Malek's Story Book II The Tok'Ra Legacy Series
by Pagan Twylight
Summary: Sam battles Bastet. SG1, Tok'Ra, Furlings. Parallels Blood of My Heart Malek-Gwennetha Romance, Sam-Martouf-Lantash, Daniel-other, knowledge of Blood helps; is not necessary. This is Malek and Gwennetha's love story.
1. Fascination 1 MALST

_**Disclaimer:** All publicly recognizable characters and places are the property of MGM, World Gekko Corp and Double Secret Productions. This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment, not monetary purposes. Previously unrecognized characters and places, and this story, are copyrighted to the author. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author._

_**Spoilers:** none_

_**Rating:** Has been cut to allow posting under T... original is NC-17 and can be accessed from my homepage, as always._

_**Pairings:** Sam/Martouf/Lantash…Daniel/Kataya…**Malek/Gwennetha**…there are some others that get mentioned but not necessarily closely followed. This portion of the Sequel is dedicated to the romance between Malek/Gwennetha and was written for Steph._

_**Summary:** A discovery on a distant planet leads, SG1, the Tok'Ra and the Furlings on a hunt that could ensure the survival of the Tok'Ra. Egeria left her children a Message in a Furling temple. Now all they have to do is figure out exactly what the messages mean and where they will lead them…and do it before the System Lords discover the secret._

_**Please read first:** **Malek's Story** follows the events of Blood as seen through the Tok'Ra Malek's viewpoint, starting with chapter 34 of Blood. There is not a separate chapter of Malek's Story for each of the end chapters of Blood. Several Blood chapters are sometimes treated in one chapter of **Malek's Story**. This story (Malek's Story) follows the development of the relationship between Malek and Gwennetha and there is **information that was left out of Blood, but put into Malek's story**, for the sequel. It may occasionally be slightly redundant (but still enjoyable, or so I've been told) for those who have read Blood, or it will be a treat for those who want to see the romance develop between Malek and Gwennetha. **Either way, I hope you enjoy it. **_

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_Therefore, here is: **Malek's Story**-Prequel to Daughters of the Queen and Sequel to Blood of My Heart, Beloved of My Soul._

_**Reviews** are welcome and **appreciated.**_

_**Chapter One:** Malek and his host, Devlin, become fascinated by Kataya and Merdwin's daughter, Gwennetha. They observe her during the evening meal and then finally talk to her afterwards. She takes them to their room and gives them a goodnight gift to dream about. _

_**Characters this Chapter:** Malek/Gwennetha_

_**Rating this Chapter -** PG-14, er, T I guess. _

___**"Italics" -** Symbiote-Host or Telepathic Communications_

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**_Malek's Story_**

**_Chapter One_**

**_Fascination_**

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Malek sat at the table in the large dining room and looked across the table at the woman sitting there. She had not been here a hundred and thirty years ago when Artereos evacuated them to Avilion, the Sanctuary, to escape Bastet. Even when they had thought her mother would die, she had not come. No one had thought it unusual, for she was a warrior, also like her mother, and she had been involved in desperate fighting during the time of Bastet as it had come to be known.

His host had been different then. He had died only a few decades ago, after they had been together for a very long time. Now he had a young and vibrant host and both of them were finding this woman fascinating. Watching her, he was beginning to know what it was about her mother that had fascinated Lantash and kept him so very much in love, for so long.

She looked a great deal like her mother, too. The same amazing amethyst eyes set at an exotic slant with the same thick black lashes surrounding them, the same golden skin, the same golden hair streaked with differing shades of that color and the same charming smile. The same high cheekbones and supple, sinuous body.

_"A body that could lead a man to paradise,"_ his host's voice, whispered to him.

_"You are speaking of a Katteri-enti Warrior,"_ Malek warned him. _"That body can be quite deadly, especially to us."_

_"Lantash managed to live with one for eighty years from what you have told me and mourned her leaving him intensely, for over ten. In some ways, he never got over her. I have heard you think so several times since we have been with the Tau'ri, and we have only been there for a couple of days,"_ Devlin reminded him.

_"I would not have been thinking about it at all, if we had not been at the Tau'ri, so the fact that she has been in my thoughts recently is nothing. If she was not also at the Tau'ri, I still would not be thinking of her,"_ Malek responded.

_"I believe I heard that this daughter is going to the Tau'ri. That she is to be part of our mission."_

_"Yes. Both daughters and the son are going. Perhaps, an unfortunate happening, since you seem to be becoming enthralled by her,"_ Malek, observed tersely.

_"Ah, but I am not the only one whose thoughts are straying across this table, Malek, and nor am I the only one with thoughts that are of a very, ah, intimate nature. Our mate has been gone for some time. It would not be unheard of for us to be having these thoughts, when seated across from a woman who is not only beautiful, but also seems to be a genuinely nice person as well. Tell me, is it possible that she is a genuinely nice person? You know these people, I do not."_

Malek sighed, knowing Dev would not let up on this until he got his answers. _"Yes, it is possible she is very nice. Her mother is a good person. Without her and her people, Bastet would have destroyed us over a hundred years ago. It looks as if we will again owe them our lives, if we come through the upcoming battle alive. Our people will most certainly do so."_

_"Then perhaps it is as well that we will be able to become better acquainted with the Warrior across from us."_

_"I will not be averse to knowing the Furling sitting there, or the warrior within the Furling for that matter, but to know her in the way you are leaning toward could be a mistake. Do you realize whose offspring she is?" _ Malek asked, his unease obvious.

_"If I have understood what has been going on, she is the daughter of Kataya the Warrior, a woman who, unless you have been telling untruths to me, you like well."_

_"That is true, she is, and I do. However, the large gentleman at the head of the table? The one with the distinct air of power about him? That is Artereos."_

_"Yes, I know. You seemed to know him. I assume he is a special person."_

_"You could say that,"_ Malek, responded grimly. "_He is Artereos of Cadwaellon and he is the leader of these people. He has immense power and knowledge, personal power as well as power as a leader. He was born of the Mysts of the All, and to my knowledge, he has only died once. Howbeit, whether or not he actually died is debatable. No one knows how old he is."_

_"What does he have to do with the delicious slip of womanhood across the table from us?"_ His host asked, almost testily.

_"He is her grandfather,"_ was Malek's stark reply. Seeming to change the subject, he asked his host, _"Do you see the gentleman at the other end of the table?"_

_"The one with the looks to attract any woman he wanted and the charm to win her? He seems fairly languid and almost bored part of the time, as if nothing bothers him over much. He gives the impression of being a dilettante. Earlier, I thought he had an air of power surrounding him, but looking at him now, I would guess I must have been mistaken. He is just a priest, is that not correct? He presided over the Sevesh Lok Twin, a rite I must admit, I devoutly hope to never have to take part in again."_

_"No, he is not just a priest," _Malek almost snapped his answer, as Devlin continued to contemplate the woman across from them, obviously giving Malek only half his attention._ "He is the greatest Enchanter of the All, a wizard and warlock of immense power; in other words, a master mage. He is second only to Artereos in Katteri-enti spirit, and surpassing him in his abilities as an Enchanter. He, also, is a First-born. The beautiful woman you want to become intimate with is his daughter."_

Malek paused to allow the information sink in a little, before giving a summary, _"That makes her the offspring of Kataya the Warrior, who we now know is a Dragon Slayer, and Merdwin of Werllockian, the greatest Enchanter of the All, not even counting that she is the granddaughter of Artereos of Cadwaellon. I think we are both insane to consider it for even one minute,"_ Malek stated firmly to his host.

Devlin was quiet at last. Perhaps, he had finally convinced him that an entanglement with Gwennetha of Cadwaellon would be a very risky thing to do. He looked up from his plate and found himself drowning in amethyst colored eyes. _"What a way to go,"_ he heard his host murmur. Malek groaned.

The servants had removed the plates and passed out the port and the mead. Even in this small thing, the Furling showed their respect for both host and symbiote, as the servants placed both Port and Mead before each of the Tok'Ra. They found over the years of the Furling-Tok'Ra alliance, that while the hosts usually preferred the port, the symbiote inevitably preferred the mead. As a result of their finding, both were always available, so that they each had what they preferred.

Although the Tok'Ra and the Furlings had an alliance, it was a loose one. The Furlings had come _too_ their aid in a very material way when Bastet had tried to wipe them out, and from what Malek knew, they hadmated with one another for the last two thousand years or so, at least, and possibly longer than that. Two of the warriors sitting here at the table were, in fact, offspring of a Tok'Ra and Furling pairing, the bonding of Lantash and the Warrior Kataya.

The Furling often passed on vital information to them about the system lords and their plans, and they came to their aid on numerous occasions in many small ways. They had never fought together on the scale they would be this time, so the upcoming mission would be a first in many ways. The last time Bastet had tried to wipe the Tok'Ra out; there had been Tok'Ra, Wiccadian, and Furling warriors together when they went in to get Lantash from her. A mission that had seen them only partway successful, for Lantash's host had died, and Kataya, his mate, had been the one that killed Dominic to save Lantash. That fact was a shock to all of them. Dominic's injuries were so severe that he could not survive, but still, she would have chosen Lantash, they all knew that.

It made him look again at the woman sitting across from him. What would a love that intense be like? He knew that it had both saved, and then almost destroyed, Lantash, for when Kataya had been called to her home-world to fight the Goa'uld, she had gone and taken their kits with her. It had been time for them to start their true training as Katteri-enti, so they had all gone, and Malek had thought that Lantash would die. Such a dark place he had gone to in his mind. The nights he had sat up with him, and the missions on which it was all he could do to keep Lantash from allowing himself and his host to get killed, were more numerous than he could remember. So a love like that was a double-edged sword, it gave immense joy and terrible sorrow.

Malek had no doubt that if her people called Gwennetha to lead them in battle she would go, just as her mother had. Furthermore, he had to admit that one hundred years later, the sector Kataya had been sent to take from the depredations of the Goa'uld was almost won. Moreover, in so doing she had become a legend among the warriors of the many worlds the Furling protected. Her daughter would someday be like her in strength and power, for she was a direct descendant of a First-born, as was her mother.

Looking at the gold of her skin and the warmth of her smile, Malek was not sure it was worth fighting against the pull he felt toward her. Perhaps, just once in his lifetime, he too, could experience that which Lantash had once admitted was one of the most exciting experiences he had ever had. Dancing in the fire the Furlings could call, he had told him, was an intense sensory experience, akin to, but not exactly sexual. Well, it could be sexual, but that was not necessary for it to be an intense experience.

This woman was someone he felt drawn to in ways he had never encountered before with any other woman and, perhaps, it would not hurt to get to know her, become friends. Feeling someone's eyes on him, he looked up and across the table, but Gwennetha was conversing with Teal'c.

Turning his gaze up the table, his eyes locked with those of Kataya and Lantash's daughter, Taesha. She was gazing first at her sister and then at him. Her gaze intense for a moment, she then sent him a dazzling smile, and turned back to someone else that had evidently asked her something, or somehow drawn her attention from him. Thank the universe. That one's gaze had been entirely too knowing.

_"You are very near to letting our body sweat, Malek. What is wrong with you?"_ Devlin asked him.

_"The sister was watching us. I do not think she was reading our mind, but she somehow knows what we are thinking, I can tell."_

_"Ah, and she signaled her disapproval, I suppose,"_ Devlin said, his voice laced with unease.

_"No, actually she smiled quite cheerfully at us. So, I do not think that disapproval was in her mind. Perhaps she was thinking that if we were to become involved with her sister, she would have something to hold over her,"_ Malek said, as his mind worked through all the reasons the sister would have shown such blatant approval.

His host snorted in disgust, or at least attempted too, although a snort was not something one could do well, when not in control of the body_, "You, my dear friend, are losing what is left of your mind, something I never thought I would see happen. If what you have been telling me and I have been observing is true, one sister would not do that to the other, so that only leaves the original idea. She approves of us. It makes sense actually, if you really think about it. After all, her father is Tok'Ra. It is only natural that she would approve of a Tok'Ra for her sister," _Devlin pointed out.

_"Yes, of course, you are correct. I had not considered that,"_ Malek replied_. "Even so that does not mean that Artereos, Merdwin, or Kataya would approve."_

_"Is she underage then? Is there some law here about this type of thing, of which I am unaware?"_ Devlin asked, anxiously. _"She does not appear too young."_

_"I have no idea how old she is. I know that she was only a hundred or so when we were last here and that she had chosen to be reborn as herself as her mother has done. The time to become Katteri is shorter when they do that, I believe. Kataya is now reborn as Katteri, but her daughter has many livings to go through before she can attain that. If I remember the talk I heard when we were here before, Gwennetha is actually quite young, and had only lived two or three times since she was born of her mother. Their life-cycle is quite complicated, Dev, and I do not pretend to truly understand it, so it will do no good to ask me all the questions I can sense clamoring to be asked," _Malek said sternly.

Once more looking up and across the table, he felt himself drowning in those beautiful eyes once again. She smiled at him warmly, before transferring her attention to what was being said. He watched her straighten and look at her Grandfather, obviously very interested in what he was saying.

_"Perhaps we, too, should be listening, Malek,"_ Devlin chided him.

_"Yes, we should. Thank you,"_ Malek returned.

"…interview her and watch her practice and if I find her to be worthy, I will take her as a student," Artereos was saying.

"There will also be the ceremony for two new knights to be given their rank," Artereos smiled at Taesha and Lanwin as he said that. He continued saying, "Tomorrow's ceremonies will take all day as there will also be an entwining ceremony being performed."

"Truly? Who?" Taesha asked excitedly.

"Truly. The entwining of Samantha and Daniel will take place first. It will be an entwining of their auras only, so it will not be taxing. After that, we will see how Samantha measures up to Katteri standards." Artereos answered.

Malek watched the shock appear on the two Tau'ri's faces. _"Well, they obviously did not know of this. I wonder what Artereos has up his sleeve?" _He queried Devlin.

_"I would guess that it has to do with the two couples and this prophecy,"_ Dev said, after giving it a little thought. _"Nothing else makes sense."_

_ "I am sure we can find out from Lantash later. No doubt the fact that all of them are now leaving the table after telling us to do as we please, confirms the fact that there will be a private meeting between the six of them,"_ Malek stated firmly.

_"Um, Malek. Malek! If you do not answer Gwennetha, I will take control from you and do so myself,"_ Dev hissed to him.

Looking up into Gwennetha's quizzical gaze, he was barely able to stop himself from blushing. She was talking to him, and all he could do was stare at her. He felt his host take over and heard him say, "I would love to join you in the game room. Please, will you not show us where that is?"

"Bring your drinks if anything is left and follow me. There is a bar in there so you can have more if you wish. I know the symbiote can filter large quantities of it out of your system, so you do not have to worry about drinking overmuch," she replied in her calm way.

"Well, actually, although they can filter it out, it is possible for us to end up with a headache, if we drink too much; they can only filter it for so long. I am afraid that both the symbiote and I could become quite inebriated if we continued to drink large quantities. Not to mention that we would both then feel extremely unwell the next day, which is why you will rarely see a symbiote or host drink to excess. Although a symbiote can overcome almost any illness, over imbibing is not one they can do anything to mitigate. Many assume the symbiote can neutralize the affects, but I am afraid it has a limit."

"Really. Now that is something worth knowing. I will have to file that away for future reference. So if I ever see a symbiote and host imbibing large amounts of alcohol, then I should assume that, just as the human will do, they wish to forget something that hurts them, at least for a while."

"I would say that is a fair assessment," Devlin agreed. "So, tell me about yourself. I am afraid that Malek was not very knowledgeable about you, although I did my best to pry information from him."

_"What do you think you are doing? Give me control,"_ Malek demanded.

_"Not now, Malek, I am becoming acquainted with this lovely and charming woman. Do be still,"_ Dev told him.

_"Watch what you say or I will allow the small amount of Port you have had to drink to go straight to your head," _Malek threatened from his semi-captive state, frustration clear in his voice.

She was laughing, delighted by his comment and she glanced up at him through those impossibly long lashes in the most charming way. "Well, my life story is rather boring. I was born to Kataya of Cadwaellon and Merdwin of Werllockian a little over four hundred years ago. I have been reborn twice. One living I spent about fifty years with the Ancients. I found it enlightening, but not my path, although my brother has been with them since his first death. He does return often for Katteri-enti training, however, I assume he will remain with them for many years to come. He takes after my father, and in a few millennia he will be a master enchanter."

"I stepped into the fire during my first living, dedicating my life to overcoming the evil in the universe. I am now, and will always be, reborn as an adult and who I am. The last time I was reborn, I spent many years cloistered here at Avilion learning to harness and direct my energy and working toward becoming a High Priestess, which I did manage to attain not long ago."

"I am a Katteri-enti Warrior and because I was injured in battle several months ago and am, therefore, unfit for active duty, I was able to spend the extra time I needed to advance to the higher rank of priestess. I have taken over my mother's position within our government while she is on her tour of duty with the Tau'ri. I will be joining the mission as both a soldier, as I am now considered healed and fit for active duty, and a priestess, although I will not use my Katteri energy. Since I am going as a priestess, my energy will be amassed to use for healing, not fighting."

"I did not realize you could be both a Katteri-enti Warrior and a Priestess," Devlin replied.

"One cannot be one without being the other. All Katteri-enti Warriors must first attain at least a third tier ranking of priest or priestess. One must attain at least the abilities of the third tier, before your superiors or your mentor will even consider you as a possible Katteri Warrior. One could not be a Katteri without the inner balance and self-control that comes from the healing abilities."

"Most do not take their training in the healing and sustaining arts to the highest levels. I believe her abilities as a high priestess are what makes my mother such a formidable warrior, and so, I am following the path she has shown me. It takes great inner strength to be able to become Katteri and not kill indiscriminately," Gwennetha explained quietly, while watching to see his reaction to her blunt allusion to their killer instincts.

"I am afraid my information about the Furling is very limited. Malek has not explained much to me," Devlin replied.

"That is understandable. The Furling-Tok'Ra alliance, though strong, is loose at best, and he would have had no reason to think of us until this mission came up. And you have only been here a few hours today, most of them taken up by preparing for and then participating in the _Sevesh_."

"I was quite impressed by your insistence on being a second during the _Sevesh Lok Twin._ A joining as tightly woven as my mother and Lantash's was is a painful thing to cut asunder. It took courage to agree to become an extension of Lantash and Martouf and share in their pain," Gwennetha said quietly.

Devlin felt heat rise in his face; Malek must be sulking to allow that to happen. He supposed he would have to give way and let him talk to her, too.

"I must be honest with you; it was Malek who truly wished to do so. We are, of course, friends, but the bonds between Martouf and I are not quite as strong as the ones between Malek and Lantash. I agreed because it was so important to him to be there for his friend." He paused for a moment as he gave his statement some thought and then added, slowly, "Actually, that is not true either. Although it was Malek's great desire to be with them, I, too, care about them and would have stepped up as well. I might not have argued as long with Selmak and Jacob over it, but still, I would have been there for them. Malek and Lantash have been friends and comrades for a long time, and Malek was there, both during Kataya and Lantash's time together, although he tells me only minimally, and the time after she left. It was," he paused, not sure exactly how to put what he needed to say, so finally continued mildly, "hard on Lantash."

Gwennetha closed her eyes for a moment, as if wishing to block out something painful. Sighing, she opened them, and smiled slightly, "I am sorry. That was a painful time for all of us. Especially for my grandfather, for he was the one who called her to come home. I do not think I have ever seen my grandfather so undecided about what to do. He hated having to recall her, but he also knew that if anyone could turn things around in that system, it was my mother. Therefore, in the end, he called her home."

"As for my mother, although she returned, she wished to die and came very close many times, but it was the risks she took that finally turned the tide in the Pegacian System. We have almost won there, and it is because of her and her leadership. So, I suppose, some good came out of it, after all. I am told that she was much the same after she realized Dayillon would not be returning, and at that time, she managed to lead our warriors to free a sector of the Crusian System. She is a formidable warrior and much feared by our enemies."

"My mother was almost inconsolable in her grief both when Dayillon did not return, and when she had to leave Lantash, which in turn hurt many other people, but also allowed many worlds to become free. You must understand that Lantash meant more to my mother than her own life. The only thing that has ever come before her love for Lantash and Dayillon is her duty to rid the universe of the Goa'uld."

"She walked into the fire during her first living at the age of fifteen, which for a Furling is still almost a child in some ways, and dedicated her life to ridding the universe of the Dark Mage Daemon Lords, the small dragons when they appeared, and any other evil that threatened the universe and the All. Nothing will ever stop her from that goal because of that decision. I was not so young as that when I too chose to step into the fire to have my soul thus forged, but still, I did, and so it also will always be a major part of my life." She stopped speaking and her expression said she was thinking of the past.

Shaking herself free from those thoughts, she turned back to him and said, "I am glad that Lantash had such a good and loyal friend. From what my mother lived through, I know that his life was a nightmare from which he could not seem to awaken and that it went on for years, not just days or months. It is well he had someone there to turn too."

"She worried about him so much for so long, and I remember how she cried when he found a new mate. She was so hurt," Gwennetha whispered, as if to herself. Seeming to come back from that time, she added, "But, she was also so happy for him. I think it made her feel somewhat less guilty, and she often spoke of hoping he had found a deep and abiding love with his new mate that would make him happy. She was sincere in that wish."

_"I believe I should answer this,"_ Malek said firmly.

_"Yes, I agree. I do not know enough of that time to do so," _Dev agreed.

Gwennetha watched as Devlin's eyes glowed indicating that Malek had come forward to take control. She was glad, as she wished to come to know both beings. Her mother had often spoken of the differences in the two, Dominic and Lantash. She wondered if it would be the same with these two.

"Lantash did not care if he lived or died for a very long time," Malek said bluntly. Then he added, "Rosha and Jolinar, his new mates, were Tok'Ra, and they had a deep and lasting love that endured for almost one hundred of the Tau'ri years. I do believe though, that he never forgot or got over Kataya. I also do not believe that he ever let them know. It sounds as if your mother was much the same. I often wondered if she really cared, since she seemed to leave with little trouble. I am glad to know that the good opinion I held of her was not unfounded, but am sorry also that she suffered so much," he said, almost formally.

"I, also, am glad to know that Lantash did have some happiness, and please know that my mother, also, will be glad to know that. Although it hurt her greatly, she understood and was glad for him. She taught Lanwin, Taesha, and myself, for that matter, that the heart is a vast place that can hold many loves within it, and that it should cherish each and every one, each and every moment we are given. It is a lesson I hope never to forget," she finished quietly.

He is nervous, Gwennetha realized. My parentage is holding him back. He knows enough of them to be leery of me, whereas his host does not. I should put his mind at ease.

She looked at him for a long moment, as the thoughts ran through her mind, and she finally said, "I believe you are interested in me, but that my family connections are making you uncomfortable. I wish you to be at ease over them, so I will be blunt. My grandfather wishes me to find a mate, and my father and mother do not interfere in my affaires. You need have no qualms in being seen with me or in thinking about me in that way."

"We do not find the interactions between a man and a woman to be something to be hidden or explained. It is a normal function of the male and female. I find you attractive, and I am drawn to you. Whether it will develop beyond an enjoyable affair, remains to be seen, but I do not intend to ignore these feelings. Do you?" Her statement was so straightforward and to the point, that Malek and his host were both left speechless for a time.

Finally, Malek managed to say, "I did not think you were allowed to read someone's mind without permission."

"I did not read your mind. You are throwing off waves of emotion; most of them are quite jumbled, and indecision surrounding me is one of the foremost. Sexual feelings are mixed in, as well as trepidation, thoughts of my parentage, and the years you spent with Lantash, after my mother left. I can hardly ignore that."

"It took very little conjugation to straighten the jumble out and realize that you are attracted to me on a sexual level, but you are somewhat anxious about getting involved with me for two reasons. The first deals with the pain Lantash went through. You are afraid to get too close lest you get burned, so to speak. The second is that the thought of who I am related to makes you feel unsettled. You are afraid that, if you sleep with me, they will come after you and perhaps turn you into a short, fat, wart-covered toad or something…or cut you into tiny little pieces with their claws."

"All I can do in response is bring it to a conscious level and discuss it with you. We are a very blunt people in some ways, Malek. Why should we both wear ourselves out second-guessing and worrying about things that can be brought out and discussed? Do you wish to know my feelings about you, since I obviously know so much about how you feel about me?" She asked him.

"That would seem to be fair," Malek managed to say.

Gwennetha nodded, "I find you very attractive physically. I could take you to my bed tonight, and be quite content with the physical release it would give me. However, I will not do so, for I also find you attractive on a deeper level, and I wish to get to know both you and your host better. I feel a pull to you that is more than a sexual one, and I wish to explore it. Therefore, if the sexual pull is all you are feeling, you can go play in someone else's sandbox."

Malek smiled, and then gave a short laugh. "As a Kat-entity are you sure you wish to use that analogy?" He asked.

Gwennetha's eyes widened and she gasped, choking on a laugh, before saying, "Well, perhaps not, but you get the idea."

"Yes, I do," he sobered quickly. "And I must tell you, that although I do find you sexually very attractive, I too, am finding myself wishing to know you better as, I am being encouraged to tell you, does my host."

After a moment's hesitation, he continued, saying, "There is, however, something I wish to know that has to do only with me. Some women find the symbiote, the thought of the symbiote to be, well, somewhat, that is…" Malek stopped speaking and shook his head at his own inability to put these deep-seated fears into words. They so seldom admitted them, even to themselves. Drawing a deep breath, he opened his mouth to begin again, when she spoke first.

"When Lantash was brought here by my mother after his captivity, he was almost dead, as you know. She also, was very weak. When they were both better, she would come here and hold him for hours, stoking him and sometimes crying."

"You would not know most of that, for you were already gone. I came back shortly after you had all moved to the new Tok'Ra home-world."

"You have no idea how much love she had and has for him. She loved Dominic deeply, also. Had she truly had to choose one over the other, I am not sure what that would have done to her."

"That is not the point of what I am trying to tell you though. You are concerned that a human woman could not truly love a symbiote; that he is just excess baggage that comes with the host. You have only to look at my mother and Samantha to know that is a false assumption. The love they each hold for Lantash shines from them."

"Do not underestimate your own charm, Malek. You must remember that while physical appearance may draw us in, it will not keep us. We must love that which is beyond the surface, to love deeply. Therefore, symbiote or human matters not, once our affections are truly engaged. Does that answer your question?"

"Yes, I believe it does. Tell me, Gwennetha, are you very like your mother other than your looks?" He asked her quietly.

"So I am told, and I believe it to be true. I have striven to be as much like her as possible, for she has an inner peace and beauty that is very deep. Why do you ask?" She questioned him.

Malek looked at her intently, gazing into those amazing eyes and trying to read her very soul, before he answered even more softly than before, "Because I am beginning to understand how both Daniel and Lantash could love a woman so deeply for so long. If it is a spell your women use, then I must tell you that I believe I am fast falling under it," he paused, before continuing, "and I have no wish to have it any other way." The smile she sent him tied a few more strands of the spell around his heart.

This time the groan was from his host, _"You are falling in love with her, Malek. I can feel it, too. Do you not think that, perhaps, we should just, you know, have a physical fling, and then move on? Maybe we should keep it out of any emotional entanglements. We could end up drowning in her if I am feeling the same emotions as you are, and I am quite sure that I am. Are you sure, you wish to do this?"_ Devlin asked, sounding almost panicked.

_"Well, Devlin, as you stated so succinctly earlier and I quote, "What a way to go."_

Dev groaned louder, looked into her lovely amethyst eyes, and said, dismay lacing his voice, _"But, I do not want to tie us to one woman; I just want to play around, have some fun, and maybe visit paradise now and then and…"_ His voice trailed off as he watched the delicate peach color tinge her cheeks and the lashes sweep down and back up to allow their gazes to lock. _"Oh, very well, I cannot fight it either, so I do not know why I am even bothering to try. Therefore, we are falling in love. Great. Wonderful. Are you sure, we have to keep this platonic for…? Oh, never mind, I get the point; there is no need for such violent thoughts towards me. Try to remember which one of us does the breathing. Yes, yes, I will shut up."_

_"Thank you. Moreover, yes, it will remain platonic until she is ready to take it farther. She may say her parents would not interfere; I am not so sure, and I, for one, do not want to become a "short, fat, wart-covered toad". Whatever in the Universe that may be. It does not sound very…pleasant," _Malek replied, obviously somewhat unnerved by her statement.

_"Do you really think he could do that?" _Dev wanted to know sounding both worried and doubtful at the same time.

_"Does it matter? Do you wish to take a chance, since both father and grandfather are Master Mages? I do not know what they are capable of accomplishing; however, after seeing what Lantash, Martouf, and Kataya's blood did at Merdwin's bidding, I am not willing to take the chance that they cannot," _Malek, shot back to him.

After listening to Malek's views on the subject, as well as giving them further thought, Devlin, too, came to a decision, telling him,_ "I see what you mean. I suppose it is best to be cautious rather than end up as something, well, some "thing". _

Malek sighed in relief, as Dev appeared to at last see the dangers that could attach to either a fling or a relationship with Gwennetha. Taking another deep breath, he stated much more calmly,_ "The important thing is that we do not let your lusts ruin what could be a wonderful…if possibly dangerous…relationship."_

_"Hey, I resent that. We Share those lusts, so just watch it, or I will go take cold showers every time it happens. Furthermore, you know how you feel about cold water. I will be very sure to stand with my back towards it, too," _Dev threatened hotly, as he took Malek's words to mean that he was the only one lusting after this beautiful woman.

_"All right, all right, I concede the point. Moreover, you are correct; we do share our lusts as well as our loves. I apologize for sounding as if I thought you were the only one with a desire to bed her. I know that we both want her. Stars of Fire! The Tau'ri thinks the host has little control over our lives. Hah!"_ Malek answered, and somehow managed to sound both contrite and exasperated at the same time.

"So have you and your host come to a decision?" Gwennetha asked allowing them realize that she was aware there was an inner conflict over her going on.

"I believe we both agree that we find you to be, not only a beautiful woman, but one who attracts us on deeper levels than that. We are agreed that we would like to become much better acquainted with you. In addition, although we both admit that, we would like to take our relationship beyond the platonic; we are willing to abide by your wishes and get to know one another better first. In fact, we both realize it is imperative that we do so, for we believe this could become a very important relationship to us," Malek said, sincerely.

"Walk me to my room? Most of the others have left for the night. On second thought, perhaps I should walk you to yours, since it is likely that you will not know the way back to your room from mine," Gwennetha remarked softly.

"I would appreciate that very much. Thank you," he agreed.

_"Well, that is not being very honest. You know you never have trouble finding your way around places once you have been there one time,"_ Devlin grumbled, somewhat irate at what he considered a somewhat underhanded thing to do. Honesty was a trait of Dev's that could get in the way on occasion.

Malek sighed, _"I am not lying, Devlin. I would not know how to get to our room from hers, only from the front door or from the dining area, unless it is in the same corridor, which seems unlikely."_

_"Oh, I had not thought of that. I apologize," _Devlin said quickly.

"Here we are. I hope you have a pleasant night's sleep," Gwennetha murmured as they stopped in front of his chamber door.

"I am sure I will not. I believe my dreams will be haunted by a beautiful woman with amethyst eyes," he said, his voice husky and low.

"Perhaps I should do something to be sure they are," she said, as she reached up, cupped the back of his head, and brought it down towards her. Her fingers lightly caressed his neck and he gave a choked groan as her lips claimed his in their first kiss. His arms had a mind of their own and they came forward to surround her and bring her body close to his. He heard himself moan, as she began to pull back and break the kiss. His arms tightened around her, not wishing to let her go.

As she melted back against him with a small sigh, his hands roved over her back and downward over her hips. Her fingers continued their erotic stroking on either side of Malek, until he thought he would explode with desire. Moaning deeply in his throat, he pulled her high against him and then turning her to the doorframe, he pushed her up against it firmly, as his hips pressed into her. His lips left the sweetness of hers to plunder her neck moving on towards her shoulder. He was fast losing control of himself and he knew it.

He wanted this woman more than he had wanted one in a very long time. In fact, he did not recall ever feeling this out of control, this quickly. Moaning again, he allowed his lips to find their way back up her throat and to the soft lushness of her lips. He was drowning and making no attempt to save himself.

A clock chiming loudly nearby brought him to his senses, causing him to break his hold and step back abruptly. "I am sorry. I had no right to be so ungentle. You would be entirely within your rights to retaliate at such mistreatment," he said, his voice stiff with embarrassment.

"No, I do not think so. I think that now we can both have beautiful and probably erotic dreams tonight," she whispered, as she smiled at him, turned, and disappeared into the shadows of the hall.

He watched her walk away, momentarily unable to form a single thought and only barely able to stop himself from following her. This need was almost overwhelming in its intensity. Dear universe, he moaned as his brain began to function, what had he done?

TBC


	2. Learning to Trust 2 MALST

_**Author's Note**: I do hope you are enjoying Malek's Story. It will begin to tie into Blood of My Heart, Beloved of My Soul more tightly later on. I did say it was **Malek and Gwennetha's story** and it is for several chapters, while Blood stays in the background. Only as we get closer to the Sequel to Blood does it become more entwined with Blood. However, even now, it does tie into Blood on and off. This chapter has little to tie it to Blood, other than a mention of the upcoming entwining ceremony and an obscure **reference by Artereos to sheep**. If it intrigues you, it can be chased down in Chapter four of Blood of My Heart in a conversation between Kataya and Merdwin. _

**_Chapter Two Summary: _**_Malek and Devlin spend the night having nightmares about Artereos and Merdwin and what they would do to them if they became involved with Gwennetha. Consequently, they ignore her the next morning, perhaps not the best route to take. Merdwin and Artereos both have a few things to say to them, as does Lantash. Luckily, for them, they take their advice to heart._

**_Characters: _**_Malek/Devlin, Lantash/Martouf, Sam, Gwennetha, Artereos, Merdwin_

**_Rating this chapter: _**_PG_

**_Pairings: _**_Malek/Devlin/Gwennetha, Sam/Martouf/Lantash, Kataya/Daniel_

**_"Italics" - _**_Symbiote-Host or Telepathic communications_

* * *

_**Malek's Story**_

**_Chapter Two_**

**_Learning to Trust_**

* * *

"_So what is it that we will see happening today? What does an aural joining consist of? I get the impression it is not a painful thing?_" Devlin asked Malek.

"_No, it is not at all painful. The couple will have their auras called forth and agree to entwine them. Once entwined, it will seem as if it shatters into a million pieces, and it will then re-enter the two people involved. I would imagine that soon Martouf and Kataya will also have to join their auras, since Lantash was not blended to Martouf at the time of his and Kataya's entwining,_" Malek answered, as he navigated the hallway, heading for the dining area.

They had all been awakened this morning at a reasonable hour, neither late nor yet early. All three of the rite's that needed performed would be done today. It would no doubt end late this evening. Whether they would be leaving for the Tau'ri world, Earth, as soon as they were over, or waiting until the following day, was yet to be seen. He supposed it would depend on how things went today and just how late it was before things were completed. The Furling hospitality would not allow them to leave without a meal, nor would it allow them to be rushed off late at night. He suspected they would spend tonight here and leave the following morning.

Neither host nor symbiote had slept well; both had dreamed of amethyst eyes laughing at them, as they fought not to fall under their spell, and both had felt the softness of those luscious lips on theirs once again. Unfortunately, for Malek, and therefore also for Devlin, every time those lips had mated with theirs, either Artereos or Merdwin had appeared in full Katteri-enti manifestation, and proceeded to disembowel Devlin and then rip Malek from his neck. Needless to say, neither man nor symbiote was particularly cheerful this morning. Malek sighed, as Devlin once more tried to convince him it was only a dream, not a vision of a future event.

Upon entering the dining area, the first thing they saw was, of course, the owner of those luscious lips that had caused them so many not so pleasant dreams. Frowning at her as she smiled at them, they turned, and made their way to the sideboard, where a large breakfast buffet was laid out. They watched from the corner of their eye, as she turned from them and said something to, of all people, her father. They watched as he glanced at them, and Dev felt Malek's apprehension.

_"If you had not frowned so obviously at her and basically ignored her, you probably would not be feeling this way now,_" Devlin told him testily.

"_I am sorry; those dreams were just too real for me to ignore. I have not had time to shake off the affect of them yet. You know how real they seemed,_" Malek replied, brusquely.

_"Well, do not look now, but Father is making his way to us. He does not appear to be out for blood, though. You must open our eyes, Malek, closing them will not make him go away,"_ Devlin chided him sharply.

"_Perhaps he will decide we are just too stupid to bother with, if we refuse to see him,_" Malek responded hopefully.

_"I do not think so and I believe he must be almost here. Open our eyes or I will take over,_" Devlin said sharply. "_I have never known you to be a coward,_" he continued slyly, and then watched as their eyes quickly opened. That was better.

Looking upwards at the slightly taller man, Dev waited for someone to say something. Merdwin smiled briefly at them and reached across them, as he murmured, "excuse me". He took a plate and proceeded to gather some pastries, before turning to leave, again murmuring politely.

"_That_," said Devlin, "_will teach us to be a little less egotistical in our outlook on life. Tell me, why did we think he was coming to talk to us?"_

_"Because we both saw the woman we just insulted by ignoring her, turn immediately to him and say something, at which he then headed our way. How were we to know that all she had done was request an apple turnover and some disgusting looking brown something? What is that anyway?" _ Malek asked, wanting to change the subject.

_"I do not know, but several people are eating it, including Lantash, so I am going to try some,_" Devlin said firmly, _"so pick some of it up."_

_"All right, all right, keep your shirt on, as Jacob would say. You know,"_ Malek continued with that innocuous train of thought, trying to distract himself and his host from their latest mistake, "_Jacob is corrupting all of us with Tau'ri expressions. Lantash told me that several weeks ago in a council meeting, Garshaw, after a long, rather boring discussion on the sewage disposal system needing overhauled, and the pros and cons of it, finally said, "Oh, Whatever" and got up and left the room. She came back shortly thereafter with a data pad and wrote down the pros and cons, counted them up, and the side that had the most pros was the way they finally did it. Even Jacob was a little stunned at her telling everyone that they could talk until doomsday, but that would not get the rather important facilities up and running better, and that if they did not get something done, then none of us would have a pot to piss in."_

Malek continued, almost morosely, as he contemplated this corruption of the Tok'Ra, _"Furthermore, I heard Selmak use a contraction the other day. That is a sign that his host is definitely rubbing off on him, for as you know, we never corrupt the language in that way. Not that it is a bad thing to pick things up from one's host. It is just that it is…it is that Jacob can be..." _Malek sighed, as he gave up trying to explain.

_"As for the contractions, I do not think it is a corruption, Malek. They are considered perfectly proper and have spellings just like any other words. Moreover, I hate to break it to you at this time, but occasionally we all use them. Rarely, it is true, but it shows that the speech patterns are rubbing off on us. They are simply a shorter way to say things, and I actually find them somewhat melodious. Jacob, since you brought him up, is blunt, honest, opinionated, sometimes rude, abrasive, objectionable, caring, witty, kind, one of the best friends one could possibly have, and an admirable soldier and operative," _Devlin responded to his rant.

_"Trust you to think contractions are melodious," _Malek said, his mood still sour._ "You are far too willing to accept things simply because they are easier. The easy way is not always the best way, and our willingness to sublimate our trepidation last evening was the direct cause of our unpleasant night," _he continued to rant, somewhat crossly. After pausing for a moment, he added, somewhat gruffly, _"As for Jacob, you are absolutely correct and I, for one, would hate to lose him, no matter how many contractions and Americanisms he teaches us." _

He felt his host stiffen and looked up from the rather delicious brown something they were both enjoying despite his bad mood, into sparkling amethyst eyes. _ "You have chocolate on your bottom lip and, as tempting as it would be to kiss it off, I find I cannot be bothered with a man or symbiote who cannot see beyond the end of their own nose. Here is a napkin; I hope it feels as soft as the kiss would have, although I have my doubts." _Gwennetha smiled sweetly, turned, and walked away.

Malek and Devlin sat, somewhat stunned, and Lantash and Samantha, seated next to them, looked over at them in surprise. "What was that all about, Malek? I think you were just insulted, although I have a feeling, knowing the Furling politeness that something more is going on here. Perhaps we should have a talk, and I could this time be the one to give you the advice you need." Lantash was obviously laughing at the look on his friend's face.

Malek scowled, and then said tersely. "I have no idea what you are talking about, Lantash. She was simply pointing out that I needed to wipe this brown, ah, semi-solid, foodstuff from my lip. That seems a polite thing to do to me."

"The brown, semi-solid foodstuff is chocolate pudding. Most women don't offer to kiss it away before changing their minds and giving you a napkin, if a napkin was all they meant to offer in the first place. I wonder what you did to upset her so much. She is much too much like Kataya to let something insignificant bother her, so it must have been something significant," Sam said thoughtfully, as she gazed at Malek.

"I do not believe it is anyone's business, but mine, what has occurred between Gwennetha and myself," Malek said stiffly. Then looking up and catching Lantash's eyes he said, "however, I do have some things I need to discuss with you, so when you have time, please let me know."

Sam grinned. "Well, I have to go talk to Kat. Talk to you later," she said airily, as she leaned across, kissed Lantash lightly, and then headed over to the end of the table where Kataya and Daniel had made themselves comfortable.

Once again, Malek closed his eyes, but this time he added a silent groan. What had happened to his nice, quietly dangerous life? What had he done to deserve this? Why must he choose between being gutted or having chocolate kissed from his lips? Would the disemboweling be worth the kiss? Something told him the answer would be yes, but that he would probably never have the chance to find out now.

"You may as well open your eyes, and tell me what has occurred, Malek. Obviously, you have upset Kataya's daughter, which may not have been your fault, but from the statement she made, I tend to believe could have been avoided. Care to tell me what that was all about?"

"When you were getting to know Kataya, did you ever dream that Artereos would disembowel your host and rip you from his neck?" Malek asked tersely, avoiding a direct answer.

"Ah, no, I do not believe that I did. I did, however, dream that he broke my host's neck and then, using his very long sharp incisors, bit me in half, pulled both halves of me out and then crushed me underfoot. I believe I also saw Kataya standing nearby saying I had been a fool to believe her when she told me he would not interfere," Lantash answered, thoughtfully.

Malek looked pale as he gazed at Lantash. "And after that how did you ever get together with her? How did you ever get past those dreams?" he finally managed to ask.

"I looked into the most beautiful amethyst eyes I had ever seen and realized that lying was not something she would ever do to me or anyone else, unless there was simply no other way. Moreover, I trusted her to know her own father. Which, by the way, she did. She knows Artereos very well, and she was extremely accurate in her prediction of his response. He was overjoyed that she had at last found a Heartmate. I believe you should stop letting your imagination run wild, and begin to listen to what she tells you, instead. In all probability, she knows her parents and grandfather better than most."

"She says her grandfather will be pleased for her, that he wishes her to take a mate, and that her parents will not interfere. Does that sound logical to you, Lantash? A granddaughter of the House of Artereos allowed to mate with a common soldier?" Malek asked, disquiet in his voice.

"Why not, Malek? The _daughter_ of the House of Artereos was allowed and encouraged to mate with a scholar, not a warrior, as a Soulmate, and a common soldier as a Heartmate. She was encouraged to choose the mate she wished with his blessing. Why should they feel differently about the Granddaughter?" Lantash pointed out, softly.

Malek sat, at a loss for words, as his friend's statement made its way into his consciousness. Seeing the truth in them he finally said, "I had not even thought of it in that way. Moreover, of course, you are correct. They did not interfere with Daniel or you, why would they disapprove of me?"

"Exactly, Malek. Why indeed? These situations sometimes take someone else to point out the obvious, I am afraid. If it really bothers you, I suggest you go and talk to Merdwin, Artereos, or both. You are not without courage, Malek. Besides, if you find you simply cannot trust her, then perhaps you will hear their words. However, I think that you should trust her. From what I have seen and remember of her, she is much like Kataya, and would no more lead you astray than her mother would."

"Now, I am afraid I must leave you, for I must stand witness for the man my mate is about to bind herself too." He laughed shortly. "Life is capricious, is it not? Theirs is a complicated society, Malek, but one thing that is a cornerstone of it is love and respect for all sentient beings, and they take both the mating of souls and hearts very seriously. If she chooses you as a mate, then you and your host will be truly blessed, that I promise you," Lantash assured him solemnly, before beginning to turn to go to Daniel.

"Lantash," Malek stopped him, "I thank you. You have always been a good and trusted friend of mine. I am grateful for your counsel in this, old friend."

"I hope my words have been as much help to you, as yours were to me, for without your counsel, I would not have what I have today, and it is a wondrous thing, just as Kataya promised me it would be."

He contemplated his friend for a moment in silence, before saying earnestly, "If you have the chance to experience the love of a woman such as she, do not deny it out of fear for what I experienced. The pain can go deep as you know, but I would do it all over again, just the same, even knowing of the pain. I would not have missed the love for anything, Malek. To have missed the pain, I would have had to miss the enchantment, and nothing would be worth missing that. Nothing," so saying, and smiling slightly, Lantash left his friend and comrade to think.

"_Did I understand him correctly, Malek? Did he just say that even if he knew he would have to endure the pain, still he would do it all over again?" _Devlin asked.

"_Yes. He did. Their love was deep and strong and it reflected onto anyone that was around them. I can still remember seeing Lantash's face when he would hear her coming down the hall toward their quarters. It is not something you would forget after seeing it, and in fact, it is the same look he gets when he sees Major Carter."_

_"Often, Kataya would be singing a new chant and it was as if his face would light from within as he waited for her to enter. She never cared who was there; she always went straight to him and kissed him as if she had not seen him in months, even if it had only been an hour." _

_"Most of the time our missions kept us apart so I never got to know Kataya well, but I was with them often enough to know that while she was the light in his life, so was he the light in hers." _

_"She is very easy to talk to, you know. Even though I did not know her well, I actually asked her why she greeted him in that manner when they were only apart a short time. She told me that life could be very short or very long. If it was long, then you could enjoy one another for a long time, but if it was short, then one should cherish each moment one had with the loved one. Since we do not know if it will be long or short, one should live as if it would be short,_" Malek said softly, as he let the advice roll over him again and knew that this time he would do as she suggested.

_"I see. It makes sense, you know. I suspect that we now have someone we need to go find. Do you have any idea where she could be?"_ Dev asked Malek.

_"No, I do not, but perhaps her father would know," _Malek said, as he got up and headed toward Merdwin.

"_Her father? Not long ago you were afraid he was going to rip you from my neck,"_ Devlin reminded him.

_"Yes. However, that was before I talked to Lantash, something I should have known to do before letting my imagination run away from me. Now, do be quiet, please,_" Malek, returned.

"Merdwin, good morning_,"_ Malek began his greeting, before losing all train of thought, as the gaze that met his became first intense and then amused.

"Malek, good morning," Merdwin said lightly, then waited to see if this young one, who was so obviously interested in his daughter, would have the nerve or the wits to actually make a request. Watching him gather his scattered thoughts, he was silently amused and then impressed, when Malek came quickly to the point and asked, "Could you tell me where I might find Gwennetha? I would like to speak with her."

Very good, Merdwin thought to himself, before replying aloud, "Well, as angry as she was at you, I rather think she would be in one of two places. She has either gone into the sanctuary, and attempted to draw peace into her angry center, and thus calm it, or she has gone to the practice area. If that is where she is, then by now, she is trouncing any number of young warriors, who are wondering what has happened to make one of their usually strict, but amiable instructors, become a dictator with a sword of blistering power this morning. If I were you, I would not admit to yourself as the cause for her suddenly caustic tongue and aberrant behavior." Merdwin watched, as even the symbiote could not keep the flush from rising under his skin. "Sit down. It will be some time before she has managed to control her anger at you enough for you to be able to talk to her."

"She, ah, does not appear to be the type to get angry in that, um, manner," Malek said, somewhat haltingly, as he seated himself across from Merdwin.

"Neither does her mother, but I can assure you, as could either Lantash or Daniel, that there are times when even the mates do not know if they are safe with her. I will admit that Daniel is quite intrepid when it comes to that though, and I have never seen him so much as hesitate to confront her."

"I was unaware of that. I did not know her well, but I do not recall Kataya ever being angry except at Bastet."

"Ah, now Bastet is in a league of her own. Kataya does not display anger over Bastet; she displays immense fury and rage."

"Gwennetha is not at that level with you. She is only annoyed actually. Mostly, because you obviously did not believe what she told you. She was correct in what she said to you, Malek. Her mother and I will not interfere as long as we see no reason to. If she takes you to her bed that is her business. She is a grown woman; her sexual choices are her own."

He watched as Malek paled almost as far as he had been flushed a moment before. "As for taking you as a mate, that too would be her choice, though if we felt she was erring we would discuss it with her. We would not stop her however, for her life is her own, not ours, and she must make her own mistakes. Therefore, you have my blessing to seduce my daughter, or," Merdwin grinned at him as he stood, "to be seduced by my daughter, whichever the case shall be. I will see you after while. Good luck." With a cheerful wave at the unmoving man, he walked away.

_"Malek, what are we to do? We are in way over our heads,"_ Devlin gasped, desperately.

_"I will not even take the time to say **I told you so**,"_ Malek said quietly, as he stood as if in a trance, and walked out the dining room door. Once in the hall, he stood undecided. What now? The training area or the sanctuary? He was not aware of where the training area was, but he could check the sanctuary and, perhaps, if she was there, at least she might be somewhat more approachable.

"Are you lost?" a voice behind him asked. Malek groaned quietly to himself and Devlin. Dear universe, why were the stars all against him this day? Slowly, he turned to face Artereos.

"Not exactly, sir," Malek replied politely.

Looking at him closely, Artereos said, "You are the Tok'Ra that my granddaughter, Gwennetha, is interested in. I do believe you made her angry this morning. Do not feel bad, young one, for Lantash did much the same to Kataya before he truly understood that we do not interfere in their lives. Nightmares, if I remember correctly, and I am fairly sure I do. I must assume that you have had the same problem because you, too, did not understand that she was correct in her statements."

"Did you know that before Dayillon, that is, Daniel, asked Kataya to be his Soulmate, I had to actually call him in and tell him that his father and I had arranged their joining between us, and that if he had any problems with the match to take it up with his father?" Artereos smiled, as if reliving a pleasant memory. "Of course, he did not approach his father, he asked her to be his mate as his father, and I, bade him, and then was completely surprised when she said yes. He could not believe she would be interested in him, a simple scholar, or that I would approve."

"Sometimes, the young do not always see that which is in front of them, you know. And, neither you nor Devlin are very old, after all. She is in the sanctuary attempting to calm her spirit, and by now, she should have succeeded to some degree."

"Thank you, sir. I appreciate your forthrightness," Malek said quietly.

"Yes, well, we have found over the millennia that being blunt can circumvent many obstacles that should never be there in the first place. Or," he continued in a thoughtful tone, "it can cause major headaches, if you use it with the wrong people at the wrong time. Sheep, my dear Malek; never underestimate the problems that can arise from sheep." He shook his head mournfully, possibly contemplating some unhappy event from the past.

"Sheep. Yes, sir, I will be sure to remember that," Malek returned stoically.

_"Perhaps he is a little senile, Malek,_" Devlin whispered.

Ignoring Dev, Malek looked at Artereos and said, "Sir, as you are familiar with animals perhaps you could tell me, what exactly is a toad?"

"A toad? Come, I will show you. It will give Gwennetha a little more time to calm her anger before you go to her," Artereos said, as he started toward a door that led into a library across which were double doors leading out into a garden. As they walked down a path, they came to a stone garden wall that was almost over grown with vines. Artereos suddenly bent down and pulled the vines away to expose a small squat creature with a bumpy skin, four legs, and bulging eyes. "That," he said, "is a toad. I had no idea you were interested in amphibians," he said pleasantly.

"I, no, that is, sir," Malek asked quietly, "who was he?"

"He, who?" Artereos asked, suddenly bewildered.

"The toad, sir, who was he before he was, well before he became a toad?" Malek asked again.

"He was not any_one;_ he has always been a toad." Artereos looked at Malek as if wondering if he had, for once, made an error in his judgment.

"So not all toads were people first?" Malek asked, somewhat hesitantly.

"No toads were people first. Where did you get such a ridiculous idea?" Artereos was forced to ask.

"Gwennetha said, that neither her father nor you would turn us into a toad," his voice slowly died, as he took in the look of unholy glee on Artereos' face. "It was not a creature I could remember hearing of, although, I now realize, I have seen them, but know them by another name. I take it she was being, ah, facetious," was the word he finally came up with.

"I believe that would be one polite way to put it," Artereos finally said, then added, "neither Merdwin nor I have turned anyone into a toad in many millennia. She is well aware of that." Looking down at Malek, he laughed heartily.

Finally, Malek joined in sheepishly, as Devlin prodded him to see the humorous side of the situation. "_Artereos must have thought we were unhinged. Be glad we explained, so that he did not think that. At least, by seeing the humor you are letting him know we, too, can be amused by the mistakes we can make,_" Dev cautioned him.

_"Yes, and when you look at it from his perspective, it is humorous. I should have realized she was speaking in jest,"_ Malek responded.

"I believe I owe her one for that, but something tells me that my hope of ever achieving that will be slight. She will always be at least one step ahead of me, will she not?" Malek finally asked Artereos.

"Yes, but you can at least point out to her that her allusion to that was part of what caused the nightmares, and therefore throw the blame for part of this mornings contretemps, back onto her. And that," he said, "is the last time I will conspire with you against my Granddaughter."

Nodding his head at a path in front of them, he told him. "If you follow that path, you will come to a small sanctuary used only by the family. I believe you will find her there. Young Malek, do not fear that which you feel for my Granddaughter. If she should choose you and love you, it will be a wondrous thing, a thing you will always cherish, for once the women of my family love they love forever, into eternity. All you need do is look to her mother and grandmother to see that is truth. Her love, if she gives it to you, will wrap you in a warmth, caring, and promise you will never find with another, I give you my word," Artereos said to him earnestly.

With that advice, he turned and walked away back into his library. They saw him make his way to the large desk, seat himself, and draw out a tome that looked as if it was indeed ancient. They turned and headed down the path he had indicated.

Quietly, they entered the side door, closing it softly behind them. Her voice startled them, "Hello, Malek, Devlin. To what do I owe the honor of your visit? For I assume you did not find your way to this out of the way room by accident," she continued, her voice barely above freezing.

Finding his throat trying to close on him, Malek swallowed nervously before saying, "No, we did not find it by accident, as you are well aware. Your grandfather pointed it out to us, after explaining that toads were not at one time people. Right before he laughed himself half to death at my expense," he said stiffly.

"You do realize," he continued, keeping Artereos' advice in mind, "that your allusion to that consequence, and my own misunderstanding of the way things stood, led to the horrendous nightmares I lived through last night. I am sorry I did not believe what you told me. I thought you were simply unaware of what your parents and grandfather would feel and do. Your father and grandfather have since informed me that I am a dolt for not believing you, but they also seemed to understand my hesitancy. Your grandfather told me of Daniel and your mother. It must have been a frightening thing for even him, to aspire to the hand of someone so far above him."

Gwennetha sighed deeply, before standing and moving toward him, saying, "But, you see, my mother was neither above nor below him, she was his equal, as I am yours. We are men and women just like you. We have hopes, aspirations, and dreams. We live, we love, and we die. We get dressed in the morning and we get undressed at night. We eat and we sleep. The fact that you are a symbiote inside a human body makes you no different than us. You, too, feel and do these things. The only difference is that you are a sentient being in a different form than us, and that makes you beautiful in your own unique way, as we are each beautiful in our own unique way."

Coming to a stop in front of him, she sighed before asking, "Why have you and Devlin come, Malek? What is it that you want from me?"

"We have come to tell you that we are sorry. I should not have let a few bad dreams so overset me that I was so unbelievably rude to you. I have spoken to Lantash, Merdwin, and your grandfather, and they all assured us that we are fools, something we had begun to figure out for ourselves, but it was comforting to hear that they agreed with our conclusion," Malek said, the words coming in a rush.

"_Tell her you believe we are falling in love with her. Tell her,_" Dev coached quickly.

"I, we, believe that we are falling in love with you," Malek repeated, before he had fully comprehended what Dev had told him to say. "That is," he began to try to backpedal his way out of his statement, "We both feel the need to get to know you, that we might find we have things in common, perhaps we may come to like one another very well."

"I preferred your first statement, Malek, it was more honest," she replied bluntly, her gaze piercing him.

"Yes, it was," he admitted slowly. "I seem to be very bad at this, but Dev assures me he is no better, so it would do no good for him to speak to you instead," he said, obviously miserable. "I have never found it so difficult to talk to a woman before, but then I have never before felt there was so much at stake and the outcome so important." She made no effort to make it any easier on him, simply watching him, her look steady and unwavering as she waited for the rest of the words to come.

Drawing a shaking breath, he closed his eyes for a moment, before opening them to look down into the intense amethyst ones before him, "I am so sorry, Gwennetha. I truly do not know why I am being such an idiot, though my host and everyone else assures me that we are both doing so."

"What did you dream, Malek?" Gwennetha asked, curiously.

He sighed, and asked, "Are you sure you want to hear this?"

"Yes," came the firm, brief reply.

"I dreamed of your eyes laughing at me for believing you about your parents. Then I would dream that I was kissing you again, only every time our lips mated, either Artereos or Merdwin would appear, in full Katteri-enti manifestation, and proceed to disembowel Devlin and then rip me from his neck. It was not," he said, "a very pleasant dream."

"No, it does not sound like it. Did you have it more than once?" she asked him.

"Every time we fell asleep," he answered with a sigh.

Laughing slightly, she said, "I am truly sorry I gave you nightmares, Malek, you and Dev. I did not intend to," she said, her voice becoming softly enticing. "Perhaps you should kiss me again, now, so that the memory will not be so fresh tonight. Perhaps you will not have those dreams anymore," she murmured as she once again brought his mouth to hers in a soft sweet kiss. A kiss he could not seem to deny. A kiss he had no desire to deny.

He slanted his mouth over hers, reached for her, and brought her body up close to his as he enfolded her in his arms. As the kiss ended, he whispered, his voice husky with desire, "You are intoxicating me, Gwennetha. I want to drink from your lips over and over," he told her softly. "I cannot get you out of my mind, and I am not even sure I wish to." He moaned, as she pulled away.

"Much as I would like to continue this discussion, I must go get ready to help during the aural entwining. I am overseeing the priestesses that are in training and helping them. I am sorry, but I must go. You should go to the sanctuary, also, if you plan to be there. You do plan to attend, do you not?"

Nodding, he agreed. "I will see you afterward? You will come out to me, and we will take a walk in the gardens perhaps?"

"Yes, I would like that very much. Thank you. Until after the entwining then. Stay in the sanctuary, and I will come for you when I am finished."

"I will be there, I promise you. I will not be foolish again, Gwennetha. I, we, want this."

She gazed intently into his eyes once again, nodded once, and was gone.

TBC


	3. Feeding the Fire 3 MALST

**_Chapter Three Summary: _**_Malek, Devlin, and Gwennetha spend some time in a gazebo down by the old Garden Wall. She pulls the fire for friends, so that they can experience the first level of the Fire Dance. Malek and Devlin make a discovery about their feelings for her._

**_Sevesh'en Twine Coeuramator - _**_Rite of the Entwining of the Heartmates Hearts and/or Auras_

_**Sevesh'en Twine Animaetcoeura – **__Rite of the Soulmates – The Entwining and Joining of Both Heart and Soul_

**_Sevesh'en – _**_A Rite of some type_

**_Caruswyn – _**_Dear One, Dearest One _

_**"Italics" -** Symbiote-Host or Telepathic Communication  
_

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_In this chapter the story begins to blend with Blood a little more while still developing the relationship between Malek and Gwennetha. Yes some of it is taken word for word from Blood of My Heart, Beloved of My Soul, as it was first written in Blood, but I felt it also belonged in this story, so please bear with me. This happens in only a few places. Hope you enjoy it anyway. Reviews would be much appreciated._

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**Malek's Story_  
_**

_**Chapter Three**_

**_Feeding the Fire_**

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Gwennetha sighed, and surreptitiously rubbed the small of her back. It had been a long day. First thing this morning, Daniel and Samantha had gone through the entwining of their auras. It was not a long or strenuous rite, but being responsible for the novice priestesses and watching that they did exactly the right thing, at the right time, was sometimes nerve racking. Today was one of those days, for the priestesses were very new, and this had been their first entwining ceremony. It had gone off without any problems, and Gwennetha had breathed a sigh of relief.

A birthing had meant that one of the attending priestesses at the joining of Samantha and Kataya had to bow out at the last moment, and they asked Gwennetha to assume her duties. She had to tell Malek that she would be busy for the remainder of the day, for she would also have to attend to Taesha before the knighting ceremony. They did not have their walk in the garden after all. At least not yet. Her mind drifted back to their conversation.

She had gone out to him after the _Sevesh'en Twine Coeuramator_, as he waited for her in one of the sanctuary pews. Everyone else had left, so the three of them had at least been alone.

She had gone straight to the point, "Malek, I am sorry, but I will not be able to go with you for a walk today. One of the priestesses that was to attend during the joining of Samantha and my mother has been called away, and I have been assigned in her place. I will be attending in both that rite and the knighting of Taesha and Lanwin. I am truly sorry," she had said again, softly, her voice showing her regret.

She had watched as Malek's eyes had become shadowed, and she had known that they were still not confident enough to take this without self-doubt entering their minds. Shaking her head, she had stepped close to them and reached up to clasp her hands behind his head. Bringing it down to her, she had kissed him gently, as her fingers softly caressed his neck. Teasing his lips until they opened for her, she deepened the kiss until he reached out and pulled her to him moaning her name against her lips. She had allowed his lips to leave hers and move slowly across her cheek and down her neck. Just remembering the caress, she shivered, feeling the need rise in her again.

She smiled, remembering how he had suddenly remembered where they were and pulled back from her, his breath coming in quick gasps, as if he had been running. "I hope that convinces you that if there was any way I could be with you instead of assisting in the rites and rituals, I would. I am truly sorry, Malek. I, too, was looking forward to being with you in between the ceremonies today, but it simply cannot be. I promise you, though, that we will spend time alone this evening after dining. All right?" She had asked.

Nodding almost numbly, he had sighed and then smiled ruefully, before saying, "I think I will continue too have these doubts if only so that you will chase them away, if you will promise to always use that method."

Looking at her earnestly, he had continued quietly, "I realize you have responsibilities, and I will try to remember that they sometimes will come before our time together. All I really need to do is look at Samantha and Kataya to see how ingrained in you that your duty is, much as it is in us. I do understand; the Tok'Ra, also, are often ruled by duty to the cause and to one another. I will try to remember that the next time I start feeling these doubts build."

He had bent and kissed her gently, before straightening and asking, "When must you go?"

"Soon," she had replied, "we have given Samantha some time to come to terms with what she just experienced, but it will not be long now. In fact, I should probably go now, for I have several things to do before she and my mother come into the ritual chamber."

"Once the joining is over, I will be cloistered with Taesha until time for the knighting, so I will not see you in between. I am sorry, but it is necessary that we attend her for several hours before the knighting, for her spirit must be at peace. I hope you understand."

"I understand you must do what you must, but I know nothing of the actual rite itself, so as far as understanding why you must do it I do not. That is not as important as understanding that you must do it," he said softly, true understanding in his eyes now.

Smiling at him, she had reached up and given him one last long kiss before turning and disappearing into the back of the sanctuary.

They had enjoyed a leisurely meal and afterwards Samantha and Martouf had begun to make plans for their Tau'ri wedding and Tok'Ra joining. Gwennetha wondered why her mother and Daniel were not marrying following the custom of the Tau'ri and decided that she needed to talk to her mother. Perhaps, she needed to look into the mirror. Of course, it could just be that they did not feel the need to join in such a way. However, she had seen the sadness in her mother's eyes, just as she often saw it in Samantha's eyes, and she needed to know why it was there.

She had her suspicions, and they were not pleasant to contemplate. If they proved true, then her budding relationship with Malek would be on hold indefinitely, for they would need her, possibly for a long time, depending on how bad the injuries were. Unfortunately, she would not be able to warn him for fear of changing the outcome for the worse. Well, she would simply have to see to it that if things seemed to be working out for them, that he would have some hope to hold onto during the darkness. If her suspicions proved true, it would be a dark time indeed, and Lantash and Martouf would need him.

Bringing her attention back to the present, she realized that the plans were finished to the point that Grandfather was suggesting the gardens for moonlit walks. What a romantic soul he had. She would be so pleased when her Grandmother returned to him for only then would he be truly complete. Just as her mother had never been truly complete without her Dayillon, even when she had been with Lantash. Always there had been an empty place in her heart and soul, though most would not realize it was so.

Gwennetha watched as her mother and her beloved Daniel left the room and headed toward the side garden. She would take him to the edge of the forest and they would ride a unicorn to the gazebo in the glen. She was fairly sure she had taken Lantash there to say goodbye. Her mother would be wishing to add a happy memory to help balance that sad one. It was a good place to Dance in the Fire. If things worked out for her and Malek, she would take him there someday.

She looked at him as he stood talking to Lantash and Martouf. He was not classically handsome perhaps, but his face had a certain strength and appeal. He was handsome to her, though, and that was all that mattered. It amazed her how Malek and Devlin could look so different even though they shared the same body.

She was beginning to understand what her mother had always tried to explain to her of how Dominic and Lantash had often looked so different. She had not really known them before. She had been young and eager for battle experience and so most of the times her mother, Dominic, and Lantash had been around, she had been gone. She realized that Martouf and Lantash also looked different when they were each in control. The difference in the smile, the way they each held the body, the turn of the head, the movements of the hands, just little things that spoke to which one of them had control at the time.

Lantash, Samantha, and Malek seemed to be discussing something of importance. Probably the wedding and what it entailed, for Malek would know no more about it than she herself did. Samantha was doing most of the talking so that must be what they were discussing. Malek was to be the _best man_ a position of honor it seemed, in the Tau'ri ceremony. Her mother and Daniel had both stepped aside, and suggested that Samantha, Martouf, and Lantash have their best friends stand in the first position since they had stood witness during the _Sevesh'en_.

Ah, now Martouf and Samantha were heading out to the front garden. She smiled to herself. She would be sure to avoid them if she took Malek there.

She smiled at him as he approached her. She and Dev had talked for a long time during dinner. He and Malek were very different in many ways. Devlin seemed to have a happy personality. He was cheerful and accepting of most things, with a good sense of humor. He had kept her delightfully amused during their meal and she had certainly enjoyed listening to and flirting with him. His personality would be a bulwark against too many depressing thoughts. He seemed to know when to be amusing and when to take something seriously. A good trait to have.

She had discovered that honesty was very important to him. One of his quirks he had told her. Moreover, he had been very open, admitting that he liked women very much. However, he had told her that his honesty reached into his relationships. If he gave his love to a woman then he did not stray from that and Malek, he had said, was almost obsessive about being true to a mate. Dev considered him to be much like Lantash. Once he loved, it was forever.

Luckily, they both agreed that once they pledged themselves it was a lifetime contract. There would be no straying, on either side, he said as he looked at her intently. She had gazed at him, and then proceeded to explain the concept of Heartmates and Soulmates to him. He would have to understand, she had told him, that when a mate was waiting for her Soulmate to return to her, it was acceptable to a take a Heartmate. Furthermore, it was a custom that went both ways.

However, she had pointed out, they were not yet even lovers, so perhaps talk of Heartmates, and Soulmates was premature. He assured her that, no, it was not. He wanted to understand their society before he became involved and perhaps took a chance on being hurt if he did not understand. It took her quite some time to explain the intricacies of the system; however, once he fully grasped it, he understood it.

It made the situation between Lantash, Martouf, Samantha, Kataya, and Daniel more understandable as well. Now he knew why they their ties to one another were so intricate. Well, no, not exactly she explained. Some of their tie was because of the Dragon Slayers and the prophecy. Most Heartmates did not bind so tightly as Lantash and Kataya. Theirs was an unusually tight and intricately woven bond. As her grandmother and Llancellon's bond was years before, as theirs also was a necessity because of the prophecy. He finally understood some of what was happening around them, as he realized what an amazing and complicated culture theirs was.

Malek was the more solemn of the two, more serious. They complimented one another very well. Dev forced Malek to see the humor in life and Malek forced Dev to accept that not all things had a humorous side.

Malek had talked to her father and her grandfather this morning and, except for his moments of doubt after the _Sevesh'en_, finally seemed to realize that she was telling the truth. He had yet to talk to her mother, but she would be able to reassure him about her response. She was sure that her mother's attitude would be that it was her life to do with as she pleased. If Kataya saw a definite pitfall, she would warn her and then it would be up to her to take the advice or not.

Malek smiled as he walked back toward Gwennetha. She was proving to be an amazing and fascinating woman and she was beginning to enthrall him. He wondered if she, too, would wish to walk in the garden. As Artereos had said, the two moons were up tonight. Last night only one had made an appearance and then been blotted out by the rain clouds, which he had discovered, came only when rain was needed and usually at night.

"Do you wish to walk in the garden also, Gwennetha?" Devlin asked her, as Malek allowed him to come forward and take control.

"Yes, I believe I would. Would you like to go to the side garden where you walked with Grandfather this morning? Perhaps we will happen across the toad he introduced you to," she teased.

"You will never let us live that down will you?" He sighed. Then he smiled as he answered her inquiry into which garden he preferred. "That one will be fine. It is a lovely little garden, but then all of the gardens here are beautiful. I do not think I have ever been in a place that is more beautiful or peaceful than it is here. Was there not a little arbor down that one path?"

"Yes, there are several as well as a little gazebo in one end down near the Old Garden wall. As for the peace and beauty here, I have to agree. I, too, have traveled to many worlds and never have I found a more beautiful place than here. Unless it is Cadwaellon, for it, too, is a truly lovely place. It does not have quite the same sense of peace and well being that is here in Avilion, though. However, the two worlds are twins in many ways so one does get many of the same feelings there."

"Let us walk down to the gazebo. My mother and Daniel will come back that way, but they will not return for quite some time. I believe she is taking him to Dance in the Fire."

"Dance in the Fire? What is that?" Dev wanted to know.

"It is an energy that we can summon, and in which we can envelope ourselves and our chosen partner. Once called, it is as if it caresses, and dances across your bodies. In its most intense form, it can be quite ah, exciting; I guess would be a good word to describe it. They will Dance in the most intense form and if you are very still and pay attention to the feel of the air, you may even be able to feel it, even though they will be far away. My mother's abilities for pulling energy are, um, rather strong."

"Can you do that too?" He asked.

"Yes, of course, but our relationship is not yet to the point of doing so in that intensity. The Fire Dance has several stages or degrees of intensity that can be brought forth. In its least energizing form, it is appropriate for friends and couples who are learning of one another. The next level is for new lovers. Those who have decided they will become physically intimate soon, but who have not yet done so. The level after that is for lovers who have become intimate, but who are not yet joined or entwined by the ceremony nor have they yet decided to do so. The fourth level is for lovers who have pledged themselves to one another verbally, but have not yet gone through the ceremony of joining. The last and most intense level is the one used by lovers who know each other well, and who have explored their passions with one another within the bonds of one of the _Sevesh'ens,_ either the _Coeuramator_ or the _Animaetcoeura_," she explained quietly.

"Would you and Malek like to experience the first of those stages? As I said, it is often used between friends or a couple that is just learning of each other. As we are," she explained gently.

"I see. Well, I am willing to try it," Devlin agreed.

"I must also have Malek's opinion and agreement before we do this," she said, as they strolled slowly down the path. They had almost reached the gazebo.

Nodding his understanding, Devlin allowed Malek to come forward. It was time anyway, as he talked to Gwennetha during most of the evening, and Malek had been very patient, being content to listen and give encouragement or make pertinent comments from time to time. Devlin had been thankful for his help in understanding some of the intricacies of the Furling culture.

"I am willing to experience this also. I believe Lantash once told me about what you are describing. He said it was an intense sensory experience akin too, but not exactly sexual in nature, although it could be if the couple so chose," Malek said, without embarrassment or hesitation. "He told me that it was one of the most exciting things he ever experienced."

"Yes, it can be. In fact in can be summoned during the act of mating which is, I am told, an almost other worldly experience, however, we are not at that point and it can be discussed later. The one I have agreed to do is not that intense, but it is enjoyable just the same."

They had reached the gazebo, and she took him to the center of it. Placing his hands at her waist, she placed hers on his chest. This was the stance always used with friends, sometimes with lovers, although that was usually a full embrace and she was not ready to do that. Truth to tell, she was afraid that if she used a true lovers embrace she would not be able to control the amount of energy she pulled into and brought into play around them.

She was fast losing herself to the feelings that Malek and Dev were causing her to experience. Never had she had her emotions become so involved so completely and so quickly. The few lovers she had taken before now had come to the point and been accepted, only after a long period of getting to know them. Not one of them had engendered in her this feeling of almost overwhelming need. She had never known the fluttering in her stomach, and the increase in her heartbeat, that she was experiencing with these two beings. She almost felt impelled to throw caution to the winds and take him as her lover at once, and that feeling was making her even more cautious. These feelings were new and unusual. This need to become his lover was spiraling out of control. She stepped back another step to put some extra distance between them, while still being able to touch him and he her.

"Are you ready, Malek, and is Devlin ready?" She asked, her voice husky with her repressed desires. She could feel the energy her mother was calling to her and Daniel, it was heavy in the air, and she knew she would need to be on guard not to tap into that intense emotion laden energy.

"Yes, we are. What do we do?" Malek questioned, sounding nervous and unsure of himself. It was obvious that he, too, was feeling the pull between them, and although he did not realize what it was, he, too, was probably sensing the energy and emotion from the couple in the forest. Malek's obvious uneasiness calmed her. She could feel her mother's energy begin to wane. By the time she explained to Malek what he needed to know and do, the bleed through of her mother's energy would, she hoped, be much diminished.

With those thoughts in mind, she answered sedately, "Just stand with your hands on my waist and you might want to close your eyes at first. It may make you dizzy and if it does, then just open your eyes. You should open them anyway, once you begin to feel the effects, as you will wish to watch as well as feel."

Nodding, he closed his eyes and clasped her waist firmly. Gwennetha raised her face to the moon and the stars and began to summon the gentle fire of friends and possible lovers. Soon it swept them into its warmth and Malek opened his eyes when he felt as if he was moving. He was surprised to see that they were not moving, but the multicolored streams of light fluctuating around them were. They swirled in spirals around them, softly brushing against them, and then retreating. The ebb and flow was what was causing the sensation of moving he thought, but he could not be sure. He watched it for a while and then looked down into Gwennetha's face. She was watching his reaction with a slight smile on her lips and a sparkle in her eyes. He smiled back at her and then gave himself up to the spirals of light and sensation again; he was enjoying the playful enchantment that it brought to them. He closed his eyes to savor the feeling of the movement without the light and could not decide which way was more enjoyable. Either way seemed to have a charm of its own.

He held his breath as he realized that it was very close to becoming more than it had started out to be. He could almost feel the energy begin to change and take on a sexual edge. He lost himself to the wonder of it and was disappointed when it began to fade before it took on that edge. He opened his eyes and watched as it faded away and realized that he was holding his breath and that Devlin was telling him they had to breathe soon.

He pulled a great amount of air into their lungs and looked at the woman who had somehow moved closer and was now in his arms. Dear universe, what was happening to them? This morning he had admitted he was falling in love. Tonight he knew the truth; he, they, were not falling in love, they were already there. He looked at her in surprise and shock. Then as desire took over, he pulled her closer to him, and lowered his lips to hers, only to jerk his head up as he heard the sound of hooves pounding on the ground. "Horses?" he asked, as it seemed to fly by on the other side of the garden wall.

"A Unicorn," Gwennetha answered. "My mother and Daniel have returned."

"They were riding a Unicorn?" He asked, in disbelief.

"Yes, both Daniel and my mother can ride them. Someday, I hope to be able to do so, but it is not easy. I believe that Lantash and Samantha also have the ability to ride them. As a Dragon Slayer she should be able to."

"I do not think I understand, but we can talk about that some other time. For now, I really would like to finish what I started," he said to her.

"Are you not afraid of having nightmares, Malek?" She teased him about the very bad dreams he had experienced the night before.

"No. Not anymore, Gwennetha. I wish to kiss you. I need to kiss you," he murmured as his lips lowered to hers once more and this time nothing interfered. As his body caught fire, he moaned. "How long before we know each other well enough, Gwennetha?" he groaned, as his lips sought her throat. "How long? We leave for the Tau'ri tomorrow and you realize there will be less privacy there than we have in our tunnels."

"I know and I am sorry, Malek, but I hear my mother and Daniel coming this way," she whispered, as she slipped out of his arms and turned to face her mother and her mother's beloved.

"There you are Gwennetha, Malek. It is a beautiful night is it not? So many stars and the energy in the air is lovely and so near," Kataya said as she walked up the steps and into the gazebo.

"Yes, mother mine, it is very heavy in the air tonight and appears to extend great distances," Gwennetha retaliated.

Kataya laughed, and hugged her before saying, "I suppose we should be more careful since we know it has a habit of bleeding through between us. I am sorry, my dear; however, I have something for you. This is the key to our quarters. Daniel's and mine. We will not need it for quite some time to come, so I want you to feel free to stay in it. I have already cleared it with Colonel O'Neill and he does not object to you using it. Here is the key and he will show you where our quarters are."

"Daniel and I are going to bed, 'Netha, for I find I still tire easily. Merdwin assures me it is still just the after effects of everything and that it should pass quickly, but in the meantime he wishes me to rest more," Kataya told her daughter, sounding disgruntled and a little cross.

Gwennetha smiled at her, saying, "I believe, from what little you have told me, and what I was able to pry from father, that you waited too long and that you were under a great deal of emotional stress, which contributed to the severity of the problem. You should have confessed to father how badly it was affecting you and had him do healing on you more than he did. However, you are here and feeling better, so I will forgive all of you and simply say thank you for the key and please get some rest," Kataya's daughter smiled at her, the love and closeness they shared obvious to the two men listening to the exchange.

Nodding, Kataya turned to leave then turned back to say, "You will take care, and keep an eye on your brother and sister? I believe they will be fine, but Taesha especially, may need someone to talk to about, um, things. Lanwin also could need some help, but I am in hopes that I have taken care of his concerns."

"I understand and I will be sure they both know that I am there and available to talk to them at any time. I promise, my mother," Gwennetha said with a smile.

Leaning forward and kissing her cheek softly, Kataya then said, "You will be leaving early and although I hope to be up to see you off, I will not promise. If I am not, you already have the key and I will see you at the wedding and joining ceremonies. Goodnight, _Caruswyn,_ goodnight, Malek," Kataya said cheerfully, before delicately hiding a yawn, turning and heading down the path that would take them to a hallway that led to their chambers.

Gwennetha watched them as Daniel reached out and placing his arm around her shoulders, pulled her close to him and placed a soft kiss on the top of her head. Then as if he could not wait a moment longer, he stopped and pulled her into his arms to drink deeply from her lips. The love they shared was in the air and the couple standing in the shelter of the gazebo could feel it quite plainly. Gwennetha had heard all her life of the great love between them, and she was glad that at last her mother had it once again.

Turning back to Malek, she said, "They joined as Soulmates in their first living. They have joined many times through the millennia and still they love each other more than anything in this or any other world. Just being around them gives one a sense of the wonder of what that type of love can be and mean. I believe that this time they will do a full and complete joining. It will make Daniel happy, for if the stories are to be believed, it bothered him greatly that she would never consent to a joining of their souls," she said earnestly.

"I do not understand," Malek said. "I thought they joined each other over and over again as a formality, and that the tie lives from one living to the next. What are you saying?"

"Yes, that is true and the ties remain. I was speaking of the entwining as opposed to the joining. Their hearts have been joined from the first, but my mother has always refused more than an entwining of their souls. As I would. Daniel has never understood, but I do. Moreover, I honor her for it, but now I think he is correct. She died the last time anyway, so they may as well be joined completely."

Seeing the confusion on Malek's face she said, "When a couple join their souls rather than just entwining them, then if one dies, so does the other. My mother and Daniel are eternal mates and they have a very deep bond, still my mother has refused to take that step, as she was more likely to die than Daniel was, and she did not wish him to lose his life because she did. I believe she may have changed her mind after this last time. Daniel has been gone from her over five hundred years and at their last dying, she chose death once he died. They might as well be joined by their souls."

"Yours is a very complex society, Gwennetha. Please be patient with me as I learn about you and all of your customs and beliefs. I truly wish to learn all I can about you, your family, and your life. I want very much to know and understand you and your society, for I think they are going to become very important to me in a very short space of time. My feelings for you are growing rapidly. I will admit to a little trepidation, but I think that as I learn more of you and your people that will lessen."

"I will be very patient and one thing I think you will learn now. I believe," Gwennetha, said to Malek, "that my mother just answered your statement about privacy on the Tau'ri world. She also just put your mind to rest about her reaction to you if you will but think about it," she said, as she held up the key.

Malek was quiet for a moment gathering his thoughts, and then he said, "You are telling me she gave that to you in front of me, so that I would know she has no intention of interfering with you and whatever you decide to do."

Smiling at him, she said, "Yes. That is exactly what she did, although she actually did more. She is telling you that she has no objection to you and she is signaling her approval of my choice. She is aware that we want one another, Malek. My mother is very passionate. We are a passionate race as are the Tok'Ra. For you _are_ a passionate race, Malek."

"Yes, we are. Very passionate. In love and in war, I am afraid. It is our passionate belief in a symbiotic relationship that fuels our fight with the Goa'uld System Lords and our wish to destroy them for their treatment of the humans they control." Sighing, he said, "I am afraid it has become an obsession with us to defeat them and set things right. I hope you understand."

"Do not forget that I share your goals, Malek. We too, wish to see that happen. I stepped into the fire and dedicated my life to stopping them, as did my mother, as I believe I told you. I will never try to stop or turn you from your purpose, for it is mine and I will share it with you. Please know that is true."

Smiling at him to lighten the mood somewhat, she said softly, "I hope that soon I will find out just how passionate you are for myself. Come to me, _Caruswyn, _and teach me of your passion," she breathed, as his lips found their way once more to hers. Dear universe, but this man's kiss could make a woman forget everything. She was drowning in the feel of him and it was wonderful. Very soon, she realized, she would take this man as he would take her.

Perhaps he would become more than a lover. That was yet to be seen, but if the feelings continued to grow, she would have to do some serious soul-searching to see if he was truly her mate. For she was feeling, as she never had before and if she found what she suspected, she would soon be telling her mother and father that she was ready to take a mate. Grandfather would be overjoyed…and so would she, for she had waited a very long time for this to happen.

Malek moved from her lips to her throat and as he felt the silken softness of her skin, he almost trembled with the intensity of the emotions he was feeling. What was happening was the most entrancing thing he had ever experienced. This woman was his mate. He could feel it in the very center of his being. Dev was sharing the emotions and they both knew that their lives had just changed forever. Soon they would have to tell her how they felt, that they thought she was meant to be their mate. What if she refused them? Sudden fear pierced them, but Malek pushed the thought aside. She had to feel the same. They could not be the only ones feeling this.

Yes, soon they would have to confess. And, as to be expected, in the way of all males of any species, the thought scared them half to death, but they knew instinctively that the reward was worth the fear. Now the only question was how soon they could confess their love to her. Soon, it had to be soon. He moaned against her throat and lifted his hand to cup her breast. He felt her shiver as he rubbed her through the cloth of her dress.

Gwennetha moaned softly, and moved seductively against him once more. His lips came back to claim hers and she gave them up to be captured by his once more. Locked in their embrace, the kiss they shared deepened and continued for what seemed like eternity as the soft night breezes moved softly around them.

The twin moons made their trek across the night sky, the stars shone and the breeze blew the scent of roses across the garden. Under a nearby vine, a toad looked out placidly upon his world. Soon, his mate too, would join him under the deep purple of the night sky.

TBC


	4. Questions 4 MALST

___**Chapter Four Summary:** Gwennetha goes to Avilion and talks to her father about Malek and Devlin. Malek and Devlin wonder if she really cares for them, or if she has gone to Avilion because she no longer wants to spend time with them. When she returns, Malek and Devlin have a slight mishap in the hot tub. Devlin tries to climb Teal'c (and/or die of embarrassment). When things calm down, somehow, Malek finds the words to tell her how they feel about her. _

**_Coeurawyn _****- **_My Heart_

**_Aima Coeurawyn – _**_Blood of My Heart_

_**"Italics" –** Symbiote-Host or Telepathic Communications_

* * *

_**Malek's Story**_

_**Chapter Four**_

_**Questions**_

* * *

God he was tired. Malek smiled slightly at Dev's thoughts. He had picked up many Tau'ri expressions in the two and a half weeks they had been here. It seemed that god this and god that were one of the more frequent ones that he used to express himself. Malek increased the flow of adrenaline to him, so that they could continue in the exercises they were taking part in.

It was not that the Tau'ri training was so very much harder than that which the Tok'Ra routinely took part in, for it was not as hard in many ways. The Tau'ri, after all, did not have symbiotes to aid their strength and endurance. The Tok'Ra had been pleasantly surprised at the amounts of both that the Tau'ri did have considering the lack of the extra strength the symbiote gave. They were beginning to admire and like many things about the humans, but there were also some obvious problems building.

Some of the Tau'ri could not get past the idea that there were symbiotes, which biologically were Goa'uld, within their ranks. The Tau'ri females though, seemed to have fewer problems with it, and that alone was causing tensions between them. Luckily, the Tok'Ra were not as protective of their female counterparts knowing they could take care of themselves.

None of those things were the reasons he and Dev were so tired, though. It was the loss of sleep that was taking its toll on them. Gwennetha was still refusing to mate with them in a physical way, and to make it worse, not only had O'Neill appointed him next in the chain of command after Selmak and Jacob, he also made him the leader of team two. Gwennetha was a part of that team and, although she was neither the link nor the shield because of her status as healer, she was learning to fight as a Tau'ri, just as they all were.

He smiled to himself, remembering the surprise on the faces of both the Tau'ri and Tok'Ra, the first time they came into contact with the physical strength of the Furling warriors, male and female alike. Soldiers who approached them lightly, hoping not to hurt them, found themselves either staring at the ceiling or the floor as the Furling in question kept them pinned with very little effort. The suppleness and catlike qualities to their movements kept their physical strength hidden. Once you came into actual contact, you found very firm muscles where you assumed there had been little.

In addition, they were quick, quiet, and on you before you knew it, for you never heard them. They could match or out do the Tok'Ra for stealthy. O'Neill called them cats, and many agreed with him, for they seemed to be able to sense anyone coming upon them. When anyone mentioned that to them, they smiled and thanked them, for to them, being compared to a cat was a very high compliment. It meant they learned that lesson from their Bondmate very well. They would, they would assure the person complimenting them, be sure to pass the compliment on to their familiar.

He later asked Gwennetha for more information about the cats and their bond with them and found out that, indeed yes, the cats taught them, but it helped that their senses were heightened and very catlike. They were, after all, she reminded him, kindred to the most ferocious and skilled of the five great cats of her world, the _Pantherataya_ and the _Lionkatanar_. Moreover, part of their training involved working blindfolded against a sighted enemy.

He stopped feeling inferior after that. Their training as Warriors went far beyond anything the Tau'ri or Tok'Ra were accustomed to, and there was no point in worrying about a skill he was never taught.

It was not until later that he realized her mother's name was a combination of parts of the names of the cats. Since Furlings tended to carry names similar to that of their parents, he wondered about that. Then he realized that neither was Gwennetha named for her parents. When he asked her about it, she told him that in Furling, her name meant Blessing, and that her father had chosen it, as he considered her to be his most precious blessing. Moreover, she reminded him, her Grandmother's name was Gwynnivar, and her parents honored Artereos and Gwynnivar by naming her after them. Her full name was Gwennetha Artairamynara. Her name honored her Grandparents, but her brother, Merdwain's name honored their father, Merdwin.

She went on to explain that the All derived her mother's name from those of the great cats, among other things, and then she reminded him of the Prophecy. The name given her mother by the All was _Kataya Morna'Catira Drawyn_, which meant _Pure Strength, Beloved Warrior, and Dragon_. Samantha's name, given her by the All was _CsillaBellawyna Morna'Catira Drawyn, _which meant _Beautiful Star, Beloved Warrior, and Dragon_. The truth was that the All named both her mother and Samantha. Although they were born of human parents, the All considered them born of it as well, and therefore they both bore names chosen by the All because of the _Prophecy_. However, _Drawyn_ was the part of their names recognized and used only by the All, for it was hidden until the _Prophecy_ came to pass. Moreover, in truth, many Furling offspring did not carry their parent's name. It was not a requisite thing; it was more of an honoring than anything else. Parents could honor anyone by naming their offspring after them.

Even as Gwennetha related the information to him, he remembered Merdwin going over it during their initial briefing, when they learned about Bastet's threat, as well as the other very major reason they were all now drawn to the Tau'ri world at this time. Morgasha. They were in such shock over Bastet's threat at that the time, the information about the Dragon's names might have slipped into his mind, but it also slipped right back, out until she gave him the information again. It made him wonder if there were other details he allowed to slip through unnoticed. If so, he hoped they were nothing important.

Returning to his earlier thoughts, he realized he was mostly tired of the cold showers that Dev felt were the only remedy for what was causing their sleepless nights. No matter how hard Malek tried, he could not overcome the response of their shared body to thoughts of Gwennetha. Not just thoughts either, for they spent every spare moment with her and it usually ended up with them in each other's arms. Every evening after their meal, they would go to the rec room for a movie or games of some type. They always ended up in either Kataya and Daniel's room or Malek and Devlin's quarters.

As an _officer_, Malek had a room of his own, as did each of the other _'officers_'. Since there were both Tau'ri and Tok'Ra in the chain of command, they ended up needing fewer rooms than they originally thought they would. Non-command Tok'Ra stayed in the converted 'barracks', and the Tau'ri, simply returned home at night.

The Katteri had refused to take command positions. None of them felt that it was necessary to have Katteri in the command chain, although some of them agreed to take the second command position within a team. Their first responsibility was to the links and the shields, and then it was to manifest and protect their teammates.

The younger Katteri felt that a command position could weaken their abilities to do that. A few of the older Katteri of high rank, more confident in their ability to do both, had simply said that they did not feel it was necessary, as the Tau'ri and Tok'Ra seemed to be capable and able leaders. They would, of course, step in if needed, thus their agreement to be second in command of their teams.

Therefore, their days had passed in going from one training session to another. From weapons practice, first aid, and military tactics to bed making and a class on the structure and military chain of command, so that they would know who they were talking to and what each person's status and duty was, their days started early and lasted until early evening.

Since the formation of the teams, and the addition of the team training, as well as the normal everyday practice sessions, their days had been busy and long. They had now added additional training so that they would learn the normal formations the Tau'ri soldiers automatically fell into as well as their methods of hand-to-hand combat. They introduced Tok'Ra hand-to-hand maneuvers that worked better, so that everyone knew what everyone else did. It was imperative that they all looked, acted, and fought the same. There could be no mistakes that would give them away as other than what they appeared on the surface; Tau'ri soldiers.

O'Neill called it a crash boot camp. They had looked at him for so long, he finally realized they had no idea what he was talking about, and he explained that when someone entered the service for the Tau'ri, they went through a period where they learned all the things they were now learning, but it was a little bit longer in duration. They needed to absorb it much quicker, and he was glad to say that everyone was doing a 'bang-up job of it'. This, Jacob had explained, meant they were doing a very good job.

Individually they did seem to have learned what they needed to in a very short space of time. It only fell apart when you put them into teams. They moved people with personality conflicts around. In addition, it had only been a couple of weeks, so he was not as discouraged as he could be. If it did not improve though, things could be bad when it came time for the battle.

_"It is time to quit for the day, Devlin. Let us go take a shower, preferably a hot one and then find Gwennetha. She has been gone from the training since noon. I hope nothing is wrong,"_ Malek said.

Looking at the clock on the far wall, Devlin spoke up, "Okay, people that will be all for today. Be here at 07:00 tomorrow morning. Dismissed."

_"You are becoming quite good at the Tau'ri military language, Dev. And, at least our group seems to listen to you for the most part."_

_"Thank you,_" Dev said, as he looked around the room. Spying O'Neill talking to Jacob, he headed toward them. They were just finishing their conversation as he came up to them, and Malek was unprepared when Devlin stopped O'Neill saying, "Colonel, do you know where Gwennetha was today? She did not report for duty this afternoon."

O'Neill looked at him wide-eyed for a moment before becoming uneasy. "I should have told you earlier. She asked for the afternoon off to do something. She said something about her _inner balance_ and needing to spend some time in a sanctuary, or at the very least, alone in meditation. Then she came to me about two, said it wasn't working, and asked if it would be all right if she went to Avilion. She seemed as serene as ever, but there was an unusual edge to her voice, so I let her go. She expected to be back by this evening," he finished.

"I see," Dev, answered, although it was obvious he did not. "In that case, I will probably see her later. Thank you, Colonel," Dev had continued politely, before leaving him there.

Jacob fell into step with him as they headed for the elevators that would take them up from the bowels of the mountain to the occupied areas of the base. "So, Gwennetha didn't tell you she was leaving for the day? I am surprised. You two seem to be getting very, ah, friendly."

"No, she did not. No, we have not argued. No, I have no idea why she did not tell me, and No, I do not want to discuss it," Devlin answered testily, then sighed. "I am sorry, Jacob. Malek and I are just tired," he smiled slightly at his friend, one of the few Tok'Ra that shared his sense of humor.

"Not sleeping well, hm? Well, love will do that to you. Stop taking so many cold showers, they aren't conducive to sleep, either," Jacob said, not looking at them.

"How did you…? Never mind, I do not want to know how you knew," Dev replied.

Jacob laughed gently, and said, "It doesn't take a genius to read the signs, Dev. You and Malek are so tied up in knots, you don't know which way is up. You should just tell her, and get it out in the open. The worst she can do is tell you she doesn't return your feelings. The best is she will fall in your arms. Anything in between and you will feel better."

Sighing, Devlin looked over at Jacob, and asked sheepishly, "Is it that obvious? I mean, I know we spend every evening together, but I did not think we were being obvious about our feelings for her other than that we simply found her a pleasant companion."

"I suppose every male in the universe thinks the same thing when it comes to the woman he loves. We don't realize that we give ourselves away in a hundred little ways. The look in our eyes, the extra care we take to be sure they are comfortable, the small unobtrusive touches, the softening of our voices when we speak to them, the softening of our features when we think of them, and the way our faces light up when they enter the room. They are all there, and then we wonder how the woman knew before we told her that we love her. And, make no mistake, unless they are afraid that we don't care for them, in which case they don't see any of those signs, they always know. And, even if they don't, everyone else does."

"I see," Dev, sighed again, as they stepped out of the elevator and headed for the locker room for a shower. A hot shower. "Well, I have a feeling that she is very aware of my feelings. I thought I knew how she felt, also, but now I am beginning to wonder. I keep thinking she will tell me, but she has said very little about caring for me other than that she wishes to get to know me, and that she thinks I will become important to her."

"Why would she go to Avilion? Unless she has decided she does not wish to become involved with me and wants to be replaced," Devlin said morosely, as the worst-case scenario forced its way into his mind.

"Stop thinking the worst. Take a hot shower, eat some dinner, and go relax. I'm sure she will explain when she returns," Jacob tried to reassure him.

Nodding as he went to his locker, Dev said, "You are correct, of course. I will attempt to take your advice. Thank you, Jacob."

"No problem. Come on let's get this done and get something to eat, I'm starving." Jacob grinned at him, as he headed for a shower.

"_Jacob is correct, Dev. Stop worrying, and take our shower. Moreover, be sure to turn your back to the water this time since it is a hot shower. Oh, god, yes,"_ Malek moaned to him, as the hot water massaged him through the skin on his back, not realizing he had borrowed Dev's exclamation. He missed the bathing pools on the Tok'Ra base, and on several occasions, they had gone to the hot whirlpool _spa or hot tub _area, whichconnected to the exercise area. It was the most wonderful thing he had discovered since they came here. He did not understand the insistence on the wearing of clothing into it, but went along with it anyway.

In fact, the Tau'ri had issued them all 'bathing suits', after the first time several of them had gone into the pool in their normal manner. He grinned remembering the look of shock on the officer's face as he joined them and realized the women were unclothed. Poor Lieutenant Simmons had not recovered yet, even though Jacob had apologized for them, and explained that he forgot to warn them that they would need to wear clothing into the pool. The Lieutenant had arranged for the issuing of the _bathing clothes_. "_Devlin, I wish to go to the hot tubs later this evening before we go to bed, if you do not mind. I think I need the relaxation it seems to bring to me and to you, for that matter,"_ He told his host.

_"All right, Malek, all you have to do is ask you know, or take control for that matter, you know I do not mind just going along for the ride."_

_"I know. I think the Tau'ri are surprised at how often the host is in control. At least that has been my impression, and I do not understand why they would be. They know we have a symbiotic relationship and share the body,"_ Malek said, frowning over the thought.

"_I believe I understand it, Malek. I have given it some thought because I, also, have noticed the surprised looks we have received. The Tau'ri have been exposed to us only when we have been on Tok'Ra business, or when they are on the Tok'Ra base, which means that the symbiote is almost always in control. They have rarely seen us relaxing or away from our duties. Therefore, they believed that the 'symbiotic relationship' is simply lip service. They have rarely seen the host in control except for Jacob or Martouf, so to them they expected the symbiote to be in control now, for all they knew, actually suppressing the host. It actually explains some of their attitudes towards us, if you think about it,"_ Devlin stated thoughtfully.

_"You are correct. I never thought of it in that way. They have almost never seen anything, but one of us in control. No wonder they are skeptical of our claims that we share the body,_" Malek sighed. _"Although this mission is important for its final goal, I believe that perhaps it is also important from the standpoint that it is giving us each a different view of one another. I know that the number of people that are willing to get to know us and seem to enjoy talking to us has pleasantly surprised me. Some of them seem truly interested in the relationship we have with one another and in our culture."_

_"I have noticed the same thing, and I believe that this joint mission will help in the understanding and acceptance between our two races,_" Devlin agreed.

"Hey, are you about ready to go get something to eat?" Jacob called to them.

"Yes, we are finished, Jacob. Give us a moment to get dressed," Devlin, answered him, as he shut off the water to a groan from Malek. "_I promise you the hot tub, later, dear one,"_ Devlin teased, yet reassured him.

_"Thank you. Do you think they will have chocolate pudding tonight?"_ Malek wondered, beginning to look forward to a meal.

Dev chuckled, as he said, "_If not pudding, then perhaps cake. They are sure to have something chocolate."_

_"Then hurry and dress. Jacob is waiting,"_ Malek responded.

Soon the two men were making their way to the commissary.

* * *

"I do not know why I came home for the day. I just needed to spend some time in the sanctuary, my father," Gwennetha said, as she sat with Merdwin in the cloister garden.

"Did you find your answers, Gwennetha?" Merdwin asked her gently. He had a special bond with his daughter. She was one of the lights of his life, as Kataya was one of Artereos'. He had not understood their bond until he had a daughter of his own. He wanted to protect her, and yet, at the same time, he wished her to experience every wonder in the universe.

She smiled at him as she shook her head, "Had I found the answer I sought, I would not still be here and talking to you, my dear Papa." The use of her childhood name for him brought a pain to his chest, as well as a smile to his lips.

"Have you talked to your mother?" He asked her next.

"No, I wanted your opinion first. I will seek her if I need to, but I know she is preoccupied. I, too, have looked into the mirror. I have seen the darkness and the blood surrounding her and Samantha. I will not add to her burdens if I can help it, and besides I usually come to you first," she added with the smile she kept especially for her father.

"I know you do. So what is the problem that the sanctuary and the cloister cannot help you with?" He asked quietly.

"I think that Malek and Devlin may be my mates. Perhaps more than a Heartmate," she whispered, raising eyes that were almost frightened to his. "I have never felt this way about a man before, and I am unsure of what to do. It is making me angry at myself, and I am afraid that anger is about to bleed over into my relationship with them," she said, her eyes, no longer frightened, were suddenly snapping with an inner fire and frustration.

"I have nothing to measure my feelings by. I have never had a serious Heartmate. How do I know, Papa? How can I tell if he is a Heartmate or perhaps even more?" She asked, as the fire left as suddenly as it had come, leaving behind a young woman who was unsure of herself and her feelings. "I thought I would know immediately if he was the one. When I first met him, I felt drawn to him in so many ways, on so many different levels, but now all I want when I am near him is to take him to my bed. Surely there is more to a Soulmate than that," she said, her voice full of sorrow.

Merdwin smiled at her, and said softly, "So, you have not taken him to your bed yet, and because you cannot get passed that feeling, you are doubting the original feelings you had about him."

"Yes," she nodded her agreement.

He sighed, before saying, "Sometimes we know immediately that we have met that certain someone. At other times, it only comes to us slowly. I think that your first feelings were pointing toward your being at the least a Heartmate. Tell me, Gwennetha, do you feel as if his very essence is a fire in your soul? Does his very name burn in your blood?"

"Yes," she gasped, "how did you know that is how I feel about him?"

"Do you know the words a Furling Soulmate would say to you if he was asking you to be his mate, my daughter?"

She frowned, thinking, "I am not sure I ever heard them. Are there certain words that they would use? I cannot believe I would not know this," she said, once again frustrated.

"Yes there are certain words that are used, and most do not know them, for they seem to come without prior knowledge of them when the one being asked is a Soulmate. If Malek is your Soulmate, then when he declares himself he will say the words in some form, although they may not exactly match. Then again, they may match perfectly. My personal opinion is that the all sends the words at the right time, if you are truly mates. Just as your response will be sent to you if you are his Soulmate."

"What are they? How will I know if he is the one?"

Smiling, Merdwin said to her, "He will say this or a variation of it if he is indeed your Soulmate… my love, my blood burns in my veins with a fire and passion for you that I cannot deny. My heart and my soul are incomplete without you. You are the woman, the mate. It is my wish that you become mine for eternity. My most ardent desire is for our souls and hearts to entwine and join and for you to become my eternal mate. I have such love for thee, Blood of my Heart. Come to me, join me, and walk with me into eternity."

"As I said, Gwennetha, it may not be exactly those words, but it will be some variation of them, and your answer will be in kind if he is indeed your Soulmate. Trust in the All to give you the answer you need when the time comes," Merdwin told his daughter softly. "And, you will no longer feel the need to wait to join with him physically once you know for sure. It will be the most natural thing in the world and a wondrous happening, unlike any other mating you have ever experienced."

Feeling the peace she had been seeking begin to enter and balance her, she leaned forward and gave her father a kiss and a smile. "Thank you. I think I understand now. As you said the words, I felt a tug of recognition, and an answer formed in my mind. I think that perhaps I will be bringing my mate home before long. At least, I will once the mission is completed, and our tasks are finished," she said, confidence in her voice.

"I agree, my daughter. Now that you have come to the recognition yourself, I can tell you that I have seen the portends leaning in this direction, as has your mother. She will be happy for you, and I will tell her if you wish me to. Go back to the Tau'ri world, and spend an evening with your mate, Gwennetha."

"Yes. You may tell her. I know she will be happy for me. Moreover, I believe I will go now, instead of waiting for dinner. Tell Grandfather I had to get back please, but assure him of my love."

Laughing softly at her eagerness to return he agreed, "I will tell them both, _Coeurawyn."_

Smiling she nodded, kissed his cheek again murmuring, "Thank you, Papa," and turned, hurrying toward the gate. She had the men she loved to return too.

* * *

Seeing Jacob in the hall as she headed for her room, she stopped him to ask, "Have you seen Devlin? Has he eaten yet?"

"Yes, we ate quite some time ago, and he was heading for the hot tubs in the gym. He just left though, so he will be there for a while yet. Have you eaten?"

"No, I just returned from Avilion. I will go get something and then join him, thank you."

"Is everything all right, Gwennetha?" Jacob asked.

Seeing the brilliance of the smile she turned on him, he believed her when she said, "Oh, yes, I am fine now, thank you. I feel much better after spending the afternoon in Avilion."

"Good," he said. "I'll see you tomorrow in the training room then."

"Yes, I will be there. Goodnight, Jacob," she said, as she turned and headed for the commissary. She had to eat something, even if it was just a snack of some kind, and then she had to find Dev.

* * *

He had his back to the door, and for once, he was in the pool alone. Several people were using the gym equipment, but no one else was using the hot tub. She walked quietly to him and stood watching him. He was immersed in the water as far as he could without being under it. Malek was reveling in the feel of the warm water, she knew. His eyes were closed, and he had a look of bliss on his face. She lowered herself and sat quietly behind him, watching him as he enjoyed the feel of the water.

Soon he sighed, and sat up straighter. Reaching out, she touched him lightly on the shoulder. Startled by the unexpected touch, he jerked, and his feet slid on the bottom of the pool allowing his head to fall backward. The back of his neck and head hit the edge of the pool with a distinct crack, and he sank under the waters edge, just as Teal'c came into the room that housed the hot tub. He and Gwennetha both reached for him, and between them pulled him free of the water. He opened his eyes as he gasped, and then sputtered as the water still ran down his face.

As the pain in his head increased, Dev moaned and closed his eyes, only to open them almost immediately. Malek was not responding to him. He looked at Gwennetha, and panic edged his voice, as he gasped, "Malek is not answering me. What is wrong with him?"

Placing her hands on the lower part of his head, she felt the lump the crack on his head had caused to form, but more importantly, she felt beyond that to the life force of Malek. It was there, but faint.

"He is alive, Dev, but please, you must stay quiet. Teal'c, can you carry him to my mother's room?"

"Indeed. I will be happy to do so, but do you not think we should take him to the infirmary?"

"I will use my ribbon on him, Teal'c. I am a high priestess, a skilled healer for my people."

Bowing his head as he lifted Devlin and looked to her, he said, "I had forgotten. I will take him there at once."

It took little time to reach the room, and she indicated that Teal'c should stand him on his feet. As he did so, she reached out and stripped the wet bathing trunks from Devlin's body, causing him to emit a high-toned squeak as his eyes flew open. Seeing the woman he loved kneeling at his feet, while he half-stood, half-reclined, naked, before her, he suddenly came to life, turned to Teal'c, and tried to climb him as if he was a place of refuge or escape. Realizing what he was doing, he jerked away from him, and looking into the startled gazes of the two people he was standing between, he closed his eyes again, moaned, and jerked free from Teal'c's suddenly slackened hold. As he sank to the floor, he leaned forward and put his head in his hands, as he emitted another moan.

"He is obviously disoriented, Teal'c," he heard Gwennetha murmur. "If you can, get him into bed, and cover him so he does not become chilled. I will get my ribbon. Please lay him on his stomach so I will have better access to Malek."

_"Yes, please cover us quickly, Teal'c_," he heard Malek say faintly, in a slurred tone, "_Before he kills us both with his embarrassment."_

_"I am so sorry, Malek. I am also relieved to hear you. Are you all right?"_ Devlin asked him, at once more concerned for his friend than his own predicament.

"_No, I am not all right. I am, in fact, seriously injured, and though I hate to be the one to tell you, I do not know if I can heal my injuries for they truly are severe, Devlin. I am not sure that even Brialek could do anything, for I think my spine snapped. I am losing all feeling, I am afraid. I am sorry, but I believe I am dying, Dev._"

_"No. No, you cannot leave me, Malek. Malek!"_

"Gwennetha, Malek regained consciousness for a moment, and he tells me he has snapped his spine, and he is dying," Devlin said hoarsely. He felt her lay her hand on his neck, and then he felt the warmth of the ribbon as she activated it.

"He is unconscious again, Devlin. He did not snap his spine; however, he did bruise it quite severely, and that is no doubt causing him to lose feeling. Sensation will return shortly, and he will regain consciousness. I will not allow him to remain injured, I promise you," she said firmly.

Teal'c watched as she focused her energy upon Devlin's neck, and he realized that she was expending great amounts of energy. He could see it draining her. "Where is your circlet, Gwennetha?" Teal'c asked her quietly.

"Dresser," she replied briefly.

Seeing it where she had left it laying when she had gone to the gym, he picked it up, and placed it on her head. The stones immediately began to glow, at least partially replacing the energy she was expending. He could see the relief she felt, as the energy entered and sustained her. Teal'c remembered Daniel Jackson telling him how Lantash had explained that the Furling did not usually heal completely unless it was a battle situation. They simply sustained until the injured could begin to heal themselves. Unless he was mistaken, Gwennetha was healing Malek, not sustaining him. He would keep watch to make sure she did not overextend herself.

Teal'c looked at the clock. She had been working now for over thirty minutes without pause, and unless he was mistaken, she had yet to lessen the amount of energy she was using. The beams of light coming from the ribbon changed from one color to another occasionally, but they spent the most time in the golden hues. She appeared to be all right, but he did not that she could continue this level of energy output for long periods. Malek's injury must have been very serious for her to need to continue for this long and at this level. No doubt, the blow had caught him just right for it to do the amount of damage it obviously had. Glancing at the clock again, he frowned. It had now been fifty minutes. Moreover, it appeared to be draining her again. The circlet was not keeping up with the amount of energy she was expending to heal Malek.

"He is back with me, Gwennetha," Devlin said, suddenly. "He sounds quite strong, and he tells me he will be able to finish healing himself." When she did not stop, he said suddenly, "Gwennetha, he says you must stop; you are expending too much energy."

"I am fine, Devlin, tell Malek to hush, and let me finish, please," she said, smiling slightly. She moved the beams of light slightly to one side and held it there for several minutes. Evidently, Devlin had also had a head injury. The ribbon stopped for a moment, and then began again on the scrape that ran down Devlin's back from where they had pulled him from the pool. It took very little time to heal it, too.

As the ribbon shut off the second time, Teal'c stood before saying, "I believe you will be able to handle things from here without me. If you should need me, though, do not hesitate to call me."

"I will certainly do so if I need you, and thank you for your help, Teal'c. It was much appreciated," she said, as she followed him to the door.

Bowing his head silently in acknowledgment, he smiled softly and left.

Gwennetha reached out her hand and locked the door, then turned back toward the man still lying on his stomach on the bed. She had caught the waves of embarrassment that had come from him when she had stripped the trunks from his body. The Tok'Ra were so casual about their bodies, it had never occurred to her that he would feel that way. Of course, in normal circumstances, he probably would not have been embarrassed at all.

She sighed to herself. This could take some time, and she might as well get started. She was really tired though. Contrary to what she had told Devlin, Malek had been hurt badly, although he had not snapped his spine. It had been cracked and badly bruised though, and it had taken a great deal of energy to heal him. She should have thought of her circlet herself, which just showed her how much her love for this man could send her wits a begging. Drawing energy without meditation was slower, but it would keep her going for now.

Walking slowly back to the bed, she slipped into it beside him, still saying nothing, but slowly rubbing circles on his back. He still refused to face her, and at last, she sighed and said, "Devlin, I am sorry. It never occurred to me that it would bother you so much if, I removed your clothing. I just did not want to leave you in the wet clothes, and I needed to start to work on Malek as quickly as possible. While his spine did not snap, it was injured badly, and I needed to work on it right away. I am truly sorry, please do not be angry with me," she said softly.

_"Devlin, if you do not answer the woman we love and who just saved my life, I will take control and answer for you,_" Malek threatened firmly.

Grabbing the sheet, Devlin rolled over and faced her at last. Looking into her concerned eyes, he could not stop himself from reaching for her. As he brought her lips to his, he sighed as they softly touched and clung. "I am not angry with you, my love," he said softly. "It was a silly reaction, and I do not even know why I reacted that way."

"You do not suppose the blow to the head you suffered had anything to do with it? You also had a slight concussion, you know. I healed it after I finished Malek. I was frightened half to death when I heard your head hit and then saw you sinking." Suddenly, her eyes were brimming with tears.

Her vision was so blurred she did not see Malek come forward. As first one and then another tear found its way down her face, he sat up and took her into his arms. "I am fine, my love, I promise you," Malek assured her, realizing that even though she knew he was healed, still she needed to hear his voice and know he was functioning and well.

Relaxing against him for a moment, she enjoyed being in his arms, pulling free of him, and wiping her cheeks. "Lie down and rest, I have a few things to do, and then I will be back," she said, as she got up and walked to the door. "I mean it, Malek, lie down, and rest, and I will return in a few minutes. I promise you."

Nodding, he realized that he was indeed somewhat tired; he lay back down and closed his eyes.

_"I am glad you are all right, Malek. I was very upset when you did not answer me. I am glad that Gwennetha could sense your life-force, for I could not feel you at all."_

_"I am sorry I frightened you, but I believe I was unconscious for a few minutes right after it happened. I came to as you were attempting to climb Teal'c."_ Hearing Dev's moan of embarrassment, he continued, "_I am sorry; I should not have reminded you."_

_"That is all right. I will never forget opening my eyes and seeing her kneeling at my feet, while I was lying so awkwardly in front of her. Naked."_

_"Devlin, I do not think she even noticed that. She was focused on getting you into the bed and using the ribbon on us, not looking at our body, naked or not,"_ Malek said softly.

_"I suppose you are correct. I can always pretend that it was so anyway."_

_"She was frightened for us, Dev. I truly do not believe she was aware of anything, but getting us healed."_

_"Thank you, Malek."_

_"You are welcome. Do you want to resume control?"_

_"Only if you need to rest and wish me to,_" Devlin told him.

_"I am quite fine, thank you. She did a very thorough job of healing us._" Hearing the door open, he looked up to see her entering with some clothing in her hands. He watched as she turned and locked the door, before approaching the bed.

"I have brought your sweats for you to sleep in. I will go into the bathroom so that you may get dressed in privacy," she said softly, as she laid the clothes on the bed and then left for the bathroom.

Scrambling up from the bed, he found the sweat bottoms and slipped them on; followed by the t-shirt she brought to wear with them.

"Are you dressed?" she asked.

"Yes."

She opened the door and walked into the room, and Malek thought he was losing consciousness again. She was in a gown that was unlike any in which he had ever seen her. It floated around her and was almost, but not quite, transparent. It hinted, but gave no secrets away.

"Get back into bed, Malek," she said to him quietly.

Without even thinking about it, he did as she bade him, and then again forgot to breathe, as she joined him and turned out the light, leaving on only a small light in the bathroom.

"Gwennetha?" he asked, not understanding.

"Lie down, and go to sleep, Malek. I wish to be with you tonight to reassure myself that you are truly all right. Please, humor me."

Still afraid to believe this was happening, he moved down in the bed and lay stiffly beside her. He heard her sigh, and then he listened to her soft, placid voice as she said, "What is wrong, Malek? Do you not wish to sleep with me?"

How was he to answer that he wondered? "_I suggest the truth,"_ Devlin suggested, glad it was Malek in control and not himself.

_"Thank you,"_ came the sardonic reply.

"I have wanted to be in your bed since the day I met you, Gwennetha. However, I never expected to be here as a patient. I wanted to be here as a lover, not an object of your sympathy," he finally said, tersely.

"And, I have wanted you in my bed since the day we met, also as a lover, not a patient. Moreover, I am not now looking on you as a patient, Malek. I am keeping you here as much for myself, as for you. I told you what happened frightened me. I am not yet ready to let you out of my sight; I need to know that you are here beside me, alive. I need to feel the warmth of you next to me. I need to hear your heartbeat and the sound of you breathing. I need you, Malek, you, and Devlin," she whispered softly, in the darkness.

Malek reached for her blindly, finding her unerringly. "Do not fear that we will leave you, my heart. Dear universe, Gwennetha, the feelings you engender in us are unlike any we have known before. Our dearest love, our blood burns in our veins with a fire and passion for you that we cannot deny. Our hearts and our souls are incomplete without you. You are the woman, the mate. It is our wish that you become ours for eternity. Our most ardent desire is for our souls and hearts to entwine and join and for you to become our eternal mate. We have such love for thee, Blood of our Heart. Come to us, join us, and walk with us into eternity." Taking a shaking breath, he added, "We know that we cannot truly be your eternal mate. I have no idea why I said that. We are not Furling, and we have only one life to give to you, but if you would accept it, we would join with you gladly, _Aima Coeurawyn._"

Waiting for her response, he began to get nervous when she continued to say nothing. "Gwennetha? What is wrong?" he asked, as he reached over and turned on the bedside lamp. Looking at her in the lamplight, he realized she looked completely stunned. "Gwennetha?" he asked again, shaking her slightly.

"Where did you learn those words?" She asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

"What words? What is the matter? Surely, you know that I, that we, love you," he said quietly.

"I – yes, I know you do, or at least, I believed you did, although you had not yet told me so in words, only that you thought you were falling in love with me that one time. Where did the words you spoke come from, Malek? Please tell me," she said again.

Thinking about it for a moment, he said in a bewildered way, "I do not know. They just came to me. It is the way Dev and I feel about you, Gwennetha. You are a fire in our blood. You make us feel completed. It is as if something we did not even know we were missing has come to us, and you are that something. Why?"

Taking a deep breath, she looked into his eyes as she answered him. "The words you used are the words a Soulmate uses to ask his chosen mate to join with him for eternity. Be you sure that is what you meant to do, Malek, you and Devlin, for once I answer, if it is yes, we will be bound for all time," she said quietly, and watched as the shock entered his eyes, only to be replaced by joy. He smiled at her, and then shook his head, saying, "Well, perhaps not for all time, but for our lifetime, at least. I meant it, Gwennetha. And, Devlin loves you as much as I do. We both are waiting for you to tell us your answer, _Aima Coeurawyn_."

TBC


	5. Answers 5 MALST

**_Chapter Five Summary: _**_Gwennetha explains the consequences of Malek and Devlin's proposal. They are surprised, but delighted at her news and have no qualms about going through the declaration with her. Gwennetha accepts their proposal. ** Later: **Malek is angry with himself and his team after a much smaller force thoroughly trounces them. Sam, Kataya, Merdwin, and Gwennetha do some sword practice and Malek wins a bet._

**_Warning:_**_ somewhat graphic loving follows when Malek and Devlin's proposal is accepted by Gwennetha._

**_Sevesh'en Twine Animaetcoeura – _**_Rite of the Soulmates – the Entwining and Joining of Both Heart and Soul_

**_Amat Wyn – _**_My Love_

**_Aima Coeurawyn – _**_Blood of My Heart_

**_Coeurawyn – _**_My Heart_

**_Igisadonis Animawyn- _**_Beloved of My Soul_

**_Carusawyn – _**_My__ Dear One, or My Dearest One _

___**"Italics" -** Symbiote-Host or Telepathic Communication_

* * *

**_Malek's Story_****_  
_**_**  
Chapter Five**_

**_Answers_**

* * *

"You must both understand that if I answer yes, it will be for eternity, Malek," Gwennetha said once again.

Shaking his head, Malek said, "But, neither Dev nor I are Furling, Gwennetha. We will have only this lifetime."

"No," she replied, "_You_ do not understand. If I accept you, and we then join, by either the rite of _Sevesh'en Twine Animaetcoeura _or by declaration, then we _will _be mated for eternity. We will search for each other in each lifetime for all time."

"You are correct. I do not understand," he stated firmly.

"Once a Furling is joined and mated to a non-Furling mate, that mate will be taken into the All at death, and from that time on they will be reborn in the manner of a Furling. Furlings mate for eternity Malek," she repeated. "Being reborn is not generally negotiable, I am afraid, although there are exceptions."

He sat, stunned, before asking, "Are you telling me that Lantash and Martouf will return after death?"

"Eventually, yes," she replied. "Lantash mated by ritual to my mother and verbally to Samantha."

"Will they come back the same? I mean, as two beings in one body?" He asked, still stunned.

"If they chose to do so, then yes," she said quietly, as she watched him try to assimilate the information she was giving him. "The form they return in will be up to them. They can become one blended soul if they chose and be born back into Martouf's body or Lantash's, or they could both retain their individual bodies and be reborn exactly as they are now, still in Martouf's body. Should one die and the other not, it becomes a little more complicated, but I have never heard of a case where it was not worked out satisfactorily."

Gwennetha hesitated for a moment before asking quietly, "Malek, do you know about Dominic and Lantash? I am speaking of Dominic's choice when he died. It was an...unusual request. It is rarely allowed, actually, which is why my mother could be absolutely sure that it was what Dominic truly desired."

"Normally when two choose to become one...they become a blend of the two, with personality, needs, and desires of both incorporated into the one being. Even the conflicts and dislikes, are worked through. It would not do to have one personality that is conflicted within and at war with itself. She smiled somewhat wryly, saying, "So if one of you loved, say, port and one loved mead, which in your case you do, then the blended personality would in all probability choose to like both equally well. If one of you hated, oh, raw oysters, and one loved them, then you could choose to become neutral about them, neither particularly liking nor disliking them or you might agree to have either the like or dislike of them completely removed from the blended personality."

Pausing as she quite obviously contemplated the intricacies involved, "It is actually a very complicated and rather long process to work all of these things out between the two personalities, as the two personalities work through each conflict individually. In the end, you will either both like them, both dislike them, or not care one way or the other. That is not what happened with Lantash and Dominic. Dominic chose to become one with Lantash, rather than to blend with him. It is why Lantash was not aware of Dominic. Dominic _became _Lantash with but a few of his traits transferred to Lantash, his love of my mother being one of those things."

"I am telling you this so that you will understand some of the options that would be open to you upon rebirth. Other than being as you are now that is. Whichever you decided to be, either Devlin or you, Malek, if you wished to blend, it would be done this way, blending the two of you into one," she frowned as she gave her next words thought. "I suppose the best way to explain it is that you would be born into whichever body you chose, as if you are a new being with both personalities blended quite perfectly into one being. Therefore, you subsume one another, if that makes sense to you. From those who have needed to make these choices, most decide to come back as they are now, two distinct personalities, each with their own body. The usual reason given is that the partner loves both exactly as they are, so why change it. However, you should be aware that there has never been a partner who did not love the blended being just as much as they loved the individuals, so in the end it comes to the point of being the personal preferences of the two involved."

Malek swallowed, and then asked, "So, if your answer is yes, you are telling me that Dev and I will have to make that same decision? That we will truly be your mates into eternity, just as I asked you to be?"

"Yes," was the stark reply. Then she added, "So please be very sure you wish for that, before I answer."

"_Devlin, do you wish_…?" Malek began his question to Devlin, only to have him reply before he could finish.

_"Yes. I believe you know that, so why are you wasting time asking me?" _Devlin asked, on the verge of impatience.

_"Because I feel your feelings should be ascertained,"_ Malek said quietly. _ "This is more than a lifetime contract, Dev, and not long ago you wanted to play, not bind ourselves to one woman," _he reminded him, gently, realizing that Dev was very anxious, and that his unsettled emotions were causing him to be somewhat abrupt with him.

_"That seems like a lifetime ago, and I no longer feel that way. My answer is yes, Malek. Not only will we have this woman forever, we will have one another, also. I cannot think of anything I would wish for more than that. However, what of you? Perhaps you do not wish for that?" _ Devlin asked, as a wave of doubt assailed him.

_"I want both of those things, also, Dev. More than I have ever wanted anything,_" Malek assured him.

Looking away from his inner conversation and toward Gwennetha, Malek said, "We are sure, Gwennetha. I will ask you again, so that you are sure of what is being asked of you, if you like," he offered.

Shaking her head, she said quietly, "No that will not be necessary." Suddenly, a vision of what Gwennetha had seen in the mirror pushed its way into her mind. Her eyes grew wide as she stared at him and an anguished moan escaped her lips. Dear Universe, what was she to do?

If she said yes, then he would be bound to her and yet, she would not be able to be with him. There was no doubt in her mind that the scenes from the mirror would come to pass if nothing changed them. She could not tell him what she had seen, for to do so could change the outcome, and that must not be changed lest it change for the worse.

Malek looked at her and saw the fear and pain enter her eyes. What had happened? Was she unsure yet? "Gwennetha?" He asked softly. "Are you not yet ready to answer me?"

"Malek, I want to answer you, I do. I am just unsure if it is fair to you to do so," she finally said, her unease obvious.

"Why, my love? Why would you think it would be unfair to me?"

How much could she say without saying too much or too little? "I want to say yes," she finally whispered, "but I believe there are things we must discuss first. They are things that you must know about my duties and me, and how they might affect you and Devlin, before you decide for sure that you wish to leave your question waiting for an answer. You may very well decide to retract it."

Malek frowned, trying to understand. "Are you sure it is not you who are unsure of your feelings for us, Gwennetha?"

"I am not at all unsure of my feelings for you and Devlin, Malek. I love you and wish to be your mate. However, I believe that you may not wish for that once we discuss these things," she sighed softly, as she came to the conclusion that he would at least have to know that her life was not necessarily her own.

"Malek, Dev, we have talked some of duty and our responsibilities. You must understand that there are times that my duty to my people, and my world, will come before anyone or anything else. We could very well be apart for long periods of time, yet still be living, and if that happens, we would not have the choice that my mother and Lantash had. They were Heartmates."

"We would be Soulmates, and that tie is almost impossible to break except at death. Only then, before one is reborn, may one choose to dissolve the tie with the bonded Soulmate. If I am called to my people, I will go, Malek, and I could be gone for a very long time. Of course, there would be nothing to stop you from taking a lover, but I do not believe that you, Dev, or I would consider that a viable alternative, at least not at first. Therefore, you must be sure before I agree that you could withstand long absences. I am sorry. Perhaps you and Devlin should think on this and consider what it could mean," she finished, her voice soft and gentle.

"_Dev, do you need to think about this?_" Malek asked.

_"No, we both know that we took Lantash's words to heart. He would do it all again, even knowing of the pain. I think we have both realized that we want this, have we not?" _Devlin asked.

_"Yes, yes, I believe we have. If I say something you disagree with you will tell me at once, do not wait until later,"_ Malek urged him.

"_I promise you I will,"_ Devlin agreed.

"Gwennetha, Lantash told me not long ago, that I should not hold back because of what he went through. He told me, that even knowing of the pain, he would do it all again, because the love was such a wonderful thing that he would not have missed experiencing it. Dev and I both want to experience that, and we know that the love we hold in our hearts for you is an all-encompassing one. You are everything to us."

"Both of us understand that you have responsibilities. We, too, have them, and if the Tok'Ra council sends us on an assignment, we could be gone for long stretches of time. It is even likely that we would be required to go without being able to contact you for long periods. Can you accept that as we must accept your responsibilities and duties?"

"I can, Malek, yes. I have already assured you that I will never try to come between you and your duty to the Tok'Ra," she replied firmly.

"Then why do you think that we would be any different? We are as willing to accept your duties as you are willing to accept ours," he said equally firmly.

After searching his eyes for a short time, she said, "If I am needed, if something happens and I must go without speaking to you first, I must know that you will not hold that against me or think that I do not love you. It is possible that something could happen, and I would have no chance to explain, I would simply have to go. I can promise you that I will never do anything to hurt you or Devlin intentionally."

"I will give you my answer if you can assure me that you will have unwavering faith in my love and my promise that I will return to you. I am not saying I would leave and you would hear nothing from me, but it is possible that it could take time and be a very brief message. Unwavering faith in my love and promise to return to you, Malek, just as I will have unwavering and patient love for you and your promises to me," she stressed to him.

Malek opened his mouth to say something, only to close it as he heard an exclamation from Devlin. He frowned and asked, "_What is it Devlin? What is wrong?"_

_"Malek, I believe that Gwennetha is not speaking of a nebulous 'something' that could happen. I believe she is walking a fine line with us. She is aware of something that she cannot tell us,_" Devlin said softly.

"_Are you saying she is lying to us by omission, Devlin?" _Malek demanded, his voice harsh at the thought of her lying to them when he was so sure that she would not do so.

_"No. I definitely am not. I said she cannot tell us, not would not tell us," _Devlin quickly assured him, while pointing out what her believed to be the truth.

_"I see. So what do you wish to do, Dev?" _ Malek asked his friend.

_"I believe we can trust her with our lives, Malek. She is asking for our faith in her and her promises. I can give her that. Can you?"_ Devlin wanted to know. _"You are the one with the self-doubts when it comes to her love. I believe she loves you every bit as much, if not more than, she loves me. I have no doubts about her love for either of us,"_ Dev pointed out gently.

Malek looked into the amethyst eyes watching him and heard Lantash telling him that he had known that Kataya would not lie to him. He also remembered Lantash telling him once that every time she had ever tried to lie to him he had known from the way she acted. Lying simply was not something they were adept at, at least not with their mates.

Looking into Gwennetha's eyes, Malek realized that the same was true of her. She would not lie to him, not about this. If she pledged her love to him and became his mate, then she would not leave him unless there was no other choice, and he could accept that and give her the faith she asked for. She would never willingly hurt them. That did not mean there would not be times of self-doubt, but in the end, he would remember her promise and know that she would be returning to him as soon as she possibly could.

He smiled at her. "I can accept what you say as truth, Gwennetha, and know that you will always love me and return to me as soon as you can. Dev and I both believe you would never lie to us, you would not hurt us, and that you would not deliberately stay away unless you had no choice. We can accept your duty and responsibilities to your people and your home-world. We can have faith in that love. Our statement to you stands, _Aima Coeurawyn_."

"Our dearest love, our blood burns in our veins with a fire and passion for you that we cannot deny. Our hearts and our souls are incomplete without you. You are the woman, the mate. It is our wish that you become ours for eternity. Our most ardent desire is for our souls and hearts to entwine and join and for you to become our eternal mate. We have such love for thee, Blood of our Heart. Come to us, join us, and walk with us into eternity," Malek repeated the declaration softly.

Knowing that she had no wish to refuse him, and hoping she was doing the right thing, she nodded as she clasped his hands tightly, and said softly, "My loves; You are the Beloved of my Soul. You are the other half of my soul and my heart. You are the man, the mates. It is my wish that you become mine for eternity. I, too, ardently desire that we entwine our hearts and souls and I join you as your eternal mate. I, too, have such love for thee, Beloved of my Soul. I will come to you, join you, and walk with you into eternity. Both of you, for my love for each of you is eternal," She assured them.

Leaning toward him, she brought their lips together to seal her promise to him. Gently he took her into his arms and cradled her next to his heart. Dear universe, she had said yes. They would be together forever.

"What are the words of the declaration, Gwennetha? I want you bound to me so that you cannot change your mind." He heard her laugh softly before she whispered the words to him.

Holding her away from him, he looked into her eyes as he said softly, "Blood of My Heart, Beloved of My Soul, I come to thee. You are my heart and my soul, for now and through all eternity."

Holding his gaze steadily she said to him, "Beloved of my Soul, Blood of My Heart, I come to thee. You are my soul and my heart, for now and through all eternity."

He pulled her back to rest against his chest and lay back onto the bed with her still in his arms. Reaching down he pulled the comforter up and around her shoulders. Cradling her next to his heart, he kissed her forehead softly.

He laughed softly, almost to himself and Gwennetha looked up at him. "What is amusing you, Malek? Is Devlin talking to you? She asked.

"No, actually he is relaxing and enjoying us holding you in our arms. As for what I was laughing about, well, I was remembering the wedding of Martouf and Lantash to Samantha a few days ago, and the ritual of throwing the garter, which, if you will remember, we caught. Tau'ri tradition says that the one who catches the garter will be married within the year. It must have had a powerful effect, my love, for here we are after only a few days, and we are bonded. I was thinking that Jacob and Jocasta would be next for they caught the second one; the one Martouf threw. We should warn him of the power of this tradition, do you not agree?" He teased her gently, as he reveled in the feel of her in his arms in this intimate way.

He felt rather than saw her smile, but he could hear it in her voice as she agreed, "Indeed, I believe you should warn Jacob first thing in the morning that the piece of satin and lace he was wearing on his arm is a powerful charm that will bring him to take a mate. But, you should also tell him that it will bring much happiness, also, do you not agree?" She challenged him.

"Yes, I agree. I will be sure to pass that information to him first thing." He agreed, as they lay quietly remembering the wedding that had taken place a few days earlier. Malek had been _best man,_ and Martouf, Lantash, and Samantha Carter had joined one another by the rites of the Tau'ri and the Tok'Ra. Artereos had declared that the Furling joining ritual would wait until after the great battle was over. Malek knew from the Heartmate joining that Lantash and Kataya had gone through that it would be a profound event. He was looking forward to going through the Soulmate ritual with his Gwennetha.

As they lay close together and enjoyed the feeling of warmth and comfort that existed, he became aware of her fingers gently rubbing the back of his neck. Catching his breath, he reached up and removed her fingers. "You are playing with fire, my love," Malek whispered softly. "If you continue to do that I will not be able to stop myself from making love to you."

"We are mated, Malek. Why would you wish to stop yourself?" Gwennetha asked him, her voice equally soft.

Malek froze. They were mated. "_I suggest you get busy, Malek. This is that for which we have been aching. It has caused us numerous cold showers. What is wrong?_" Dev asked.

_"I do not know. I do not believe I have actually absorbed the fact that we are mated,_" Malek replied.

"Malek, you were injured quite badly. Perhaps you are correct and we should wait. You need to rest." He heard her say.

"I feel fine, _Coeurawyn_. But, I think that there is perhaps something I need to talk to you about."

"What is that?"

Clearing his throat, Malek said hesitantly, "Gwennetha, I have been mated before. I mean I have had a bonded mate. Several, in fact. Have you, were you ever, that is…" he stopped and flushed. "I am sorry. Please forget I asked." His lips quirked in a half-smile of self-derision, "Or forget I attempted to ask."

"I have never had a bonded mate, Malek. I have, however, taken lovers. I hope this is not a problem for you because we have said our vows as Soulmates," Gwennetha said, as she pulled out of his arms, sat up, and looked down at him.

"No, it is not. I was just curious. And, although I was fairly sure you had mated before, I wanted to, well I just wondered before we, that is I needed to know if," Malek sighed, and closed his eyes briefly wondering what was the matter with him that he could not finish a simple inquiry. "I did not want to hurt you,_ Amat Wyn_," he finally managed to say.

Gwennetha laughed indulgently, before saying, "That is very thoughtful of you and Devlin. You need not worry for you will not hurt me in any way. Come to me, my love, and show me your passion," she whispered, as she leaned over him to kiss him.

Malek moaned, a sound he heard repeated from Devlin. His lips captured hers, and soon they were lost to this world as they entered the realm made up of the heated passion that burned and consumed them. The realm that was the fire of their love.

"Dear universe, Gwennetha," Malek moaned, against her throat, "I want you so. I have wanted you from the first moment I saw you. Never has a woman burned in my blood the way you do."

Gwennetha moved her hand to the bottom of his t-shirt, and grasping it, she made short work of convincing him it should not be there. Rising above him, she allowed her hands to play lightly along the lean, muscular planes of his chest and abdomen. She watched as his skin rose in little bumps as if he was chilled. As each muscle she trailed her fingertips over bunched and rippled, she smiled the secret smile all women have smiled from the Myst time to the present.

It was a smile that said she was comfortable and aware of her power over this man and his body. She could give him intense sensual pleasure, she knew it, and she reveled in her power, even as she knew that his was the power over her body. The smile also acknowledged his ability to reduce her to trembling need to match the need she would induce in him. They were partners and masters each to and of the other.

Following her fingers-tips, she allowed her lips to leave a trail of fire from his abdomen to his throat and back to tease across his chest stopping to nibble and suckle here and there. On her next foray downwards, she came to the barrier of his sweats and in moments, they joined the shirt upon the floor. He was as beautiful as she had known he would be. Very slender, he had a wiry strength and sculpted muscle. Each and every muscle tightened and rippled as she first touched and then kissed, nibbled, and teased them.

As she breathed on him them took him in, she heard his quick indrawn breath and the grasping and twisting of the comforter in his fists. Running her tongue against the tip, she loved and laved him, until his hips began to thrust upwards, attempting to increase her rhythm.

She held him at the same pace, slowly loving him, but she began drawing him in more deeply and bringing him farther and farther down the road toward a mind-blowing climax. Having no intention of allowing that to happen, when she heard him moan her name yet again, sounding desperate, as his body began to show the signs of that impending climax, she left the bed and, standing beside it, she removed her gown in one fluid move.

She rejoined him, but when he attempted to become the aggressor, she pushed him back down gently and straddling him, she lowered herself to his chest. He needed no other invitation and reaching for her, he brought her mouth to his and their tongues tangled delving into the honey he found there. He breathed in deeply, enjoying the scent and taste of her and he wished he could devour her more than he would have thought possible.

It was a heady sensation and he reveled in it. She reached behind him and began to stroke and apply pressure to Malek. He reached for her to bring her hips even closer to him so that he could bury himself in her warmth and was surprised to find her clasping his wrists and holding his arms away from her above his head as she brought her legs up and over his arms to help hold him in place. Of course, he could overcome her in a moment, but he would not use his superior strength to stop her. Not when this was so delicious a position in which to be. He moaned deeply, for in order for her to keep his hands from her, she had to stop caressing Malek and she had raised herself to the point where she was barely within his reach, tantalizingly close then farther away and then back again. He lost track of time as she gave and took and gave again.

Devlin came fore and took Malek's place. He could feel parts of his body jerk, and he realized that his hips were searching for relief but finding none. As if she, too, realized what he needed, she slowly slid her body down his, lowering his arms somewhat, but stretching out full length on him, before settling on top of his shaft. He moaned as he realized she did not intend to let him enter her yet. She was simply rubbing along his length with her heated lushness.

He switched with Malek, yet again. Both felt as if they were slowly losing their minds to the desire she was raising in them. The lovemaking they had indulged in before now had not prepared them for anything like this need that lived within them for this woman. They had known during the times that they spent together, but stopped short of fully taking her, that they desired her and would probably find themselves in a very satisfying sexual relationship when they finally consummated it. They were not prepared for the vixen who was teasing them to a point beyond reason, to a place where they would—snap.

Dear universe, he was on fire and he knew that soon he would not be able to stop himself from becoming the aggressor and taking her as he so badly wished to do. What this woman could do to them was bewitching, and both of them found themselves enchanted by her, by the feel of her body on theirs, and by the look of love—and lust—in her eyes. She was calling them now, taunting them, daring them. Suddenly, it occurred to them that she was deliberately teasing them to breaking point. She wanted them to break free of her and claim her for themselves. It would take little more and they would have no choice but to do so.

Finally releasing them, one of her hands made its way down their body to cup and massage them gently, while her other hand began to once again caress and stimulate Malek. The double assault was the final bit of tension their self-control could take and suddenly snapped. They heard her laugh softly and tauntingly, as they took control at last and rolled her over, bringing her under them, pinning her to the bed as their mouth sought and ravished hers. The taste of each of them on the other was extremely erotic. From her lips, they sought her throat, shivering in response to her slight shudder and moan of need as they sucked and nipped her lightly.

Stars of Fire, they could hear her purring, rumbling deep in her throat and chest, and it was one of the sexiest sounds they had ever heard. They could feel her building toward a climax as they rubbed themselves against her and worked on her, as she had done to them. The only problem with that was that they were also driving themselves towards their climax in the same way.

Raising himself above her, to stop the sensual torment he was putting himself, as much as her, through; it was his turn to explore and worship with his hands and lips. She watched as Devlin came to take control yet again. They were switching back and forth more quickly now, both of them reveling in the feel of her and what she did to them, neither having enough control to continue as long as they would like to. She once more placed one hand on the back of their neck pleasuring Malek and therefore Devlin while the other slipped downward to play along his body. As she pleasured them, she heard a moan and knew that it was this time from her, as well as them.

They were about to join for the first time and she wanted him, needed him. He was the passion that was feeding the fire that was building in them. She brought his mouth to hers and told him "Devlin, I need you. I need you now. _ I am yours and you are mine. Now and forever. _ _Beloved of my Soul, Blood of My Heart, I come to thee. You are my soul and my heart, for now and through all eternity,"_ she whispered her vows to him.

Holding himself above her, wanting her and needing her, still, he waited until he too could say what he wished to say before taking her. "_Gwennetha, I am yours and you are mine. Now and forever. Blood of my Heart and Beloved of My Soul, I come to thee. You are my soul and my heart, for now and through all eternity,"_ he whispered their vows to her, and then he felt her guide them to where they wanted and needed to be. He knew as he sank himself into the heated passion that was her body that at last they were complete, he and Malek. More complete than they had ever been. Only this woman could bring him to this state of wholeness and completion. He knew this with absolute certainty.

Malek slipped back into control and took over to try to slow the steady climb to the zenith of their actions, but even he was no proof against the pull and heat of her body. He was sheathed deep in her body and was fast losing what little control she had left him. She was wild in his arms, and he lost himself in her embrace. The stars coalesced and exploded for him as he fell over the edge into the wonder of the heavens.

He felt the wetness of her tears and the velvet softness of her kisses as she lay beneath him. Pulling in a shaky breath, he slowly raised himself to look down into her eyes. "Are you all right, _Amat Wyn_? Did I hurt you?"

Her smile spoke of the contentment of a well-sated lover, "No, you did not hurt me, you took me to the stars, and it was so beautiful it moved me to tears. It was as wonderful as I have known it would be from the moment I saw you and felt the pull of you on my heart and soul. I love you, Malek. I love you, Devlin. Always," she murmured softly as she wrapped her arms around them. "Always, my loves."

Sliding over to lie next to her, he reached down and drew the covers up and over them. Kissing her gently, he breathed in the scent that was Gwennetha and murmured back to her, as his eyes slowly closed, and he headed toward a peaceful sleep, "As we love you, Gwennetha. Our love. Always."

* * *

Malek did not believe that he had ever felt this much fury other than toward the Goa'uld. Caught completely off-guard, his team, including himself, found themselves taken out in a matter of minutes, along with all the other teams. All, that is, except for Gwennetha, Lanwin, and Colwyn. They held their own, even though they were the last ones standing against the surprise assault.

He came back to consciousness, after a shot from an Intar took him down, to see Gwennetha locked in battle with her father. She did not stand a chance against him, she told him later. Nevertheless, her eyes were shining as she told him how exhilarating it was to battle him. It had been a long time since they had matched swords, and she had enjoyed the challenge. He was glad that one of them enjoyed the exercise and he was quite proud of her, but he fervently wished they had been paying attention to what was going on around them. As the Tau'ri told him later, the assault caught them with their pants down. It was an odd phrase; however, even though it was somewhat obscure to the Tok'Ra, still, the meaning was plain. It was even plainer after one of the men on his team explained it more fully. It was definitely appropriate. The results could not have been worse, if their pants being around their ankles truly hobbled them.

He knew there were problems in the teams, but he did not realize how severe they were. When Kataya, Colonel O'Neill, and Jacob finished ripping them up one side and down the other, he knew that things would change. He did not know, within his team, what the true problem was, but they had less than two weeks in which to find it. That was all the time Kataya had given her people and Jacob and O'Neill had concurred. He called a meeting of his team, once the _chewing out_ they all received was over.

He asked each and every member of his team what he or she thought the problem was. It boiled down to a mistrust of the link by the Tok'Ra and Tau'ri. They were not allowing the information to flow. The Katteri had kept it open, but she could not force them to use it. The very small assault team caught them so off guard that the Katteri in charge of their shield was the first one taken out, before they even knew what was happening. They were completely out maneuvered and overpowered by a much smaller force.

It came about because of the poor performance the practice sessions were turning out. Kataya and Samantha returned from Avilion and planned the attack. Eight people took out over sixty armed soldiers and warriors. It had been a salutary lesson to them, and it certainly forced them to talk about the problems among themselves.

The Katteri handling the link finally became angry, and forcefully showed them all what it would be like if she, or anyone else, was accessing their inner thoughts without their permission and cooperation. It was an extremely obvious and unpleasant sensation and thankfully, she only did it briefly. It served its purpose however because it showed all of them that the link was not the same as someone forcing their way into their thoughts and mind. It was a lesson they needed to learn and he was grateful that she finally became exasperated and angry enough to do it. The Tau'ri had been the first to apologize to her; the Tok'Ra had followed their lead.

It also brought them to a point of finally talking to one another on a level that allowed them to realize that one problem they did not have was a distrust of one another or any personality conflicts. They all agreed that the biggest problem they felt they had was in distrusting the link, and now they felt confident they could do better. He formed them into a group, and they went through some of the training exercises again.

They did much better in just the one session. If they kept improving, at that rate, they would be ready for the battle with Bastet's forces. They only had five weeks in which to become battle ready, and Jacob, O'Neill, and Kataya gave them fair warning; there could be no mistakes. They had to be perfect within each group. Eight people working as if they were one entity. They would do it, he resolved, even if he had to call extra training sessions. They would know in a few days if they were going to be able to do it without that having to happen.

Standing in the shower as the hot water beat down on Malek, Devlin smiled at his moan of pleasure. "_Gwennetha is waiting on us, Malek, and I am hungry. Have you recovered from the shock of being trounced so soundly yet?_" Devlin asked.

_"No, I have not recovered. I agree with Jacob. Since when did we become so oblivious that we did not realize that there was something unusual going on? Looking back, it was quite obvious. O'Neill, Martouf, and Daniel were all carrying weapons, as were Jacob and Teal'c, something they only do during exercises, not when they are just walking around observing. Daniel and Martouf were there, and not one of us thought it was odd that they were there, on the day Samantha and Kataya were due to return from Avilion, but they had not come down to the training area with them. We were incompetent idiots. I agree with O'Neill,_" Malek said grumpily. "_At least one of our team put up a good defense,_" he sighed, but the pride he felt in Gwennetha flowed through Devlin.

"_She truly was wonderful to watch, was she not? I understand, now, your insistence that she will one day be as adept a warrior as her mother is. The Katteri have practice sessions in the evenings, and there is usually a group watching them. I understand that Kataya and Merdwin are going to be the instructors this evening. I would like to go in case they do any sword work themselves,"_ Devlin said.

_"Gwennetha mentioned it, too. We can go if you like, but first let us go and eat,_" Malek agreed to the plans for the evening.

As they left the locker room, they saw Gwennetha waiting patiently in the corridor. When she looked up and saw them, the smile she sent to them, so full of love, took their breath for a moment. Dear universe, but she was lovely—and she was theirs. "_We have yet to tell her parents that she now belongs to us, Malek,_" Dev said, sounding suddenly very serious and almost apprehensive.

Malek frowned at the thought, as he answered Devlin, "_Yes, and we should do so as soon as possible I suppose."_

"What is wrong, Malek? Why are you frowning so fiercely?" Gwennetha asked them as they came up to her in the hallway.

"I need to tell your father and mother that we are bonded mates before they realize you are now staying in my room," he said quietly.

"Oh, do not worry about that. My father already knows, and he will have told my mother. I told him the day I went to Avilion that I would soon be bringing my mate home. In fact, he is the one who told me the words you would say when you asked me to be your mate, if we were truly meant to be Soulmates," she answered.

Malek stopped in the middle of the hall. "What? That is why you went to Avilion that day? To talk to you father?" He asked, looking dazed.

"Well, actually I went to spend time in the sanctuary, hoping to be able to come to a decision about you. It did not help, but my father and I talked, and he told me what I needed to know. As soon as he said the words, I knew. I felt the answer come to me at once. That is why I was so, well, surprised, and overwhelmed when you used the actual words he had told me. Almost word for word, Malek, except that you used the plural we and our instead of the singular I and my."

"He truly set my heart and mind at ease, _Amat Wyn_. The All sends the words to the Soulmate when the time is right. I did not know what they were, either, until my father told me, and he did not tell me the words I should use to respond, but it did not matter for they came to me, just as they came to you. This is how I knew that we are indeed meant to be joined."

They began to walk slowly down the hall again as Gwennetha continued to explain, "I told him I was having trouble knowing if we were truly mates because I no longer had the feelings about you that I had at first. All I wanted to do was take you to my bed, but I thought there should be more to being a Soulmate than lust. He assured me that once we had declared to one another it would seem the most perfect and natural thing in the world as well as the most wonderful mating I had ever known. And it was," she finished softly, her eyes glowing as they looked up into his. "I love you, _Igisadonis Animawyn_."

"I love you also, _Coeurawyn_, but perhaps we should, ah move out of the middle of the hall," Malek said, firmly taking her hand and leading her to a deserted storeroom. Once there he pulled her into his arms and kissed her deeply. "And now that you have given me courage, we will tell your parents. Even if you told him that day, they still do not know that we have actually become bonded mates by the declaration."

"All right, _Carusawyn_. After we eat though, for I am hungry and I want to be at the practice session tonight. The rumors say that Samantha and my mother are going to take on Merdwin. I wish to see how Sam is doing now that her sessions with Artereos are finished."

Sighing, he gave her one last kiss and led her back into the hall. "All right, but later,_ Aima Coeurawyn_, later, I will teach you again of my passion, mine, and Dev's. Would that please you?"

"Yes, I believe it would. I would like that very much indeed," she said, as they walked sedately down the hall. Only the slight flush on her cheeks might have given her true thoughts away.

* * *

Sam, Kataya, and Merdwin were on the practice platform. The room was full. Everyone had heard of the last session where Kataya and Merdwin had paired to practice. With Sam added to the mix they were expecting some spectacular swordplay.

Malek and Gwennetha made their way to the edge of the platform where Daniel, Martouf, Colonel O'Neill, and Teal'c stood. Malek realized that Jacob and Jocasta were also there, as was Janet. Looking around, he realized he recognized almost everyone there. He watched as Sam, Kataya, and Merdwin stood in the center of the platform and talked to one another. Kataya drew her sword and threw it to the edge of the platform. As they watched, Merdwin moved between her and the sword, but he was still talking quietly to Sam. She stepped away and Merdwin lunged at Kataya, who eluded him, yet allowed him to force her farther from her sword.

The room was quiet, wondering what they were seeing. Suddenly, Kataya whirled away from Merdwin's next attempt and at the same time called out "Excalya Wyn! Atern! Eteat!" The next thing they knew, the sword was in her hand, and she and Merdwin were locked in combat. They stopped as quickly as they had begun and turned to Sam, who nodded that she understood. While she might, the others watching were not sure they did. That sword had leapt across the platform and into Kataya's hand.

But there wasn't time to ponder that at the moment as the three on the platform saluted each other, and Kataya and Sam began a systematic attack on Merdwin. It was soon obvious that the two women knew exactly what the other was about to do. There movements were perfectly matched, and Merdwin was hard pressed to defend against them. After about thirty minutes, they stopped and again stood talking to one another.

Malek looked at Gwennetha and surprised a look of sadness in her eyes. When she realized he was looking at her, she concealed her emotions, but Malek looked back at the people on the platform, and he could not help but wonder what that look meant. That it pertained to those people, or at least one of them, he had no doubt. He also knew she was not going to tell him.

"Malek, how did your meeting with your team go this afternoon?" Daniel asked quietly.

Looking at him sharply, Malek realized his question was a sincere inquiry, not a disguised jab at their incompetence. As if reading Malek's thoughts, Daniel said, "I am truly interested, and you should not feel bad about what happened. It had to be done to show everyone what was wrong and force them to start talking about it. Kataya feels bad that she had to be away and let things go so far off course, but she also felt that this afternoon's confrontation would be the fastest way to bring the problem out into the open."

Malek sent a wry smile his way, as he said, "At least one of my team members performed creditably. I do not remember the last time I was so angry with myself as well as with others. Kataya was correct, and it did indeed show us what was wrong. It seems that neither the Tok'Ra nor the Tau'ri trusted the link. After trying to explain once again that she would not be entering our minds, she became angry and showed each of us what it would be like if she or anyone else truly entered our minds when we did not wish them to. It was quite obvious, as well as quite unpleasant, so we now know the difference, and I believe that our practice after that incident went much more smoothly. For the first time, I believe we will be able to become the fighting unit we need to be," Malek answered calmly.

"I believe it will help, too," Daniel said, before frowning as he looked at the platform.

Following Daniel's gaze, Malek became aware that Gwennetha was no longer beside him. She had taken a place on the platform beside her mother, Samantha and Merdwin. Two other older Katteri also stood beside them. They were pairing off with a blindfolded opponent. He watched as the teachers worked with these young warriors. The Furling had sent a good mix. There were seasoned Warriors and young newly ranked Warriors, as well as some between the two extremes. He watched as Gwennetha took on her student. As each of the teachers before her had done they allowed at least a few hits before slowly making it more difficult. When it finally reached a point that the student lost their concentration and could no longer sense where their opponent was, they stopped and went into a conference of two. The teacher gave the pointers the younger warriors needed. Next time they would last longer and do better. It was a slow growing of expertise.

Now, they changed position. The teacher became the blindfolded one. It was no surprise when Merdwin trounced his student within a couple of minutes. Kataya also took less than five minutes. Gwennetha took longer, but still she was very good, Malek could tell. Then Samantha stepped out with her blindfold on. Jack was grinning and they were laying bets on how long it would take Sam to take out her opponent. Most were betting on long time periods. Martouf refused to bet as did Daniel, but Jacob took the bet and Malek found himself saying, "It will be less than five minutes." Why he felt that way he did not know for sure, but he had seen both Merdwin and Kataya take their opponents out within that amount of time. Gwennetha had taken almost ten. Samantha would not have been sent back to the Tau'ri if her abilities were not already formidable.

"You're on," Jack laughed, good-naturedly. "She only had three weeks to learn this stuff you know. Sure you don't want to change your mind?" He asked.

"No, thank you, Colonel, I will stand by my statement. It will be less than five minutes."

Jack shrugged as the pair on the platform began their combat. Within five minutes, the opponent was indeed down.

Jack turned to Malek after gathering the money that had been bet on the contest. Handing it to him, he asked, "How'd you know Carter could do that? If Gwennetha told you, then you had inside information."

Malek shook his head, "No one told me, Colonel O'Neill. It stood to reason that since both Kataya and Merdwin took their opponents out in under that amount of time that Major Carter would have the same ability. I believed that if she did not have the needed skills, she would still be on Avilion not here at the SGC."

Jack grinned, "I'm glad you're right. It makes me feel better knowing that Carter has those abilities. She's pretty damn good, huh?" Jack's pride in his second in command was palatable.

As Gwennetha joined him, he excused himself. They had some people with which they needed to talk. Now was as good a time as any. Taking a deep breath Malek prepared to tell Kataya and Merdwin that they had new sons.

TBC


	6. Battles 6 MALST

_****__**Chapter Six Summary: **__Training is going well. The teams go off-world to rescue some captured soldiers. The night before the Great Battle, Gwennetha explains to Malek and Devlin exactly who Morgasha is. She tries to prepare them for the possibility that she will be leaving for Avilion very quickly when the battle is over. Malek and Devlin are both stunned at the end of the battle._  


_**Coeurawyn –** My Heart_  
_**Carusawyn –** My Dear One, My Dearest One  
**Amat Wyn -** My Love _

___**"Italics" -** Symbiote-Host or Telepathic Communication_

* * *

**_Malek's Story_****_  
_**

**_Chapter Six_**

_**Battles **_

* * *

Malek glanced over his team where they were taking a break and discussing the last exercise in which they participated. Their performance was almost flawless. Kataya and Sam stepped in and tipped the balance after an hour of neither side gaining the upper hand, by adding another one of the teams on their side. This time it was their turn to have the tide turned in their direction.

The extra firepower finally overcame the other team, but even with the extra team's help, they did not accomplish their victory easily. He hoped it was proof that they were becoming better and better and, as he watched his team, he felt confident in their abilities. The two weeks had come and gone, and the teams reached the level that Kataya expected of them within the time-period she set. She raised the bar, and they met that one, as well. Malek wondered what was next.

"_Malek, did you see O'Neill come in? He is talking to Merdwin and Jacob and he looks very grim,"_ Devlin said.

Malek looked over at the group. Teal'c, Daniel, Kataya, and Sam had joined them. As he watched, he saw Merdwin and Jacob nod. _"Yes, he does, Dev, and now so do the others. Something is going on. We should go find out,_" Malek agreed with his Lifemate about the obvious grimness of O'Neill and now the others, as well. The group dispersed, and he could tell they were gathering the team leaders. Turning the group over to his second in command, he headed their way as Jacob finished talking to Jocasta, group four's team leader and headed toward him.

"There is a briefing immediately. A situation has come up, and we have decided to use the teams to resolve it. Head up to the briefing room, and I will see you there," Jacob told him briefly, as he headed to the next of his people he would need to talk to. As Malek had, Brialek was already approaching Jacob, aware that something was going on. Their level of alertness had increased since that day several weeks ago, too. Never again did anyone catch them so completely off guard.

He was surprised to see Gwennetha and the other priestesses there along with the team leaders. He frowned, wondering why they brought them into this meeting. It was not long before he found out. SG-10 was on a mission when a Goa'uld and his Jaffa had arrived on the planet they were checking out. Two of the team members made it back. The other two were in the System Lord's hands, and after discussing the situation, they decided that the only viable option to retrieve them was the Stargate Special Assignment teams; the teams that were preparing to face Bastet.

Merdwin, Jacob, and O'Neill felt it would be good practice. Kataya and Sam agreed. It would be slightly different from what they would face when they went after Bastet, because some of the priestesses could go in the advance contingent and throw shields around the emerging soldiers. The Katteri would be first through. The teams would follow.

As the plans filtered their way into his mind, what they had just agreed to suddenly occurred to him. His Gwennetha would be going through the gate in advance of him and almost everyone else. They would be holding off the Jaffa until the teams came through to back them up. He looked up and their gazes locked. She was completely calm and serene; he could feel it. She smiled at him, and he hoped that she had no idea that he had just almost panicked at the thought of what could happen. This was his mate, and this was what his mate did.

He looked at Martouf and Daniel. Both were quiet and calm. They trusted their mates to know their own abilities. He would have to learn to do so, too. Moreover, he had better start now, because she would never understand if he told her she could not go. In fact, he was pretty sure she would look at him in disbelief and walk away.

_"As she should,"_ Dev said quietly. "_As you just now pointed out to yourself, this is what she does, Malek. She is a Katteri-enti Warrior. We knew this, and we accepted it. We can do nothing but accept what she is,"_ he told him firmly.

_"You are correct, of course. I do not know what I was thinking,"_ Malek, murmured his reply.

_"The point is that you were not thinking at all, Malek. Your heart was, and it was crying out at what could be, what could happen to her. But, this is something we agreed to accept when we asked her to be our mate; she was very clear about her duty," _Devlin chided him.

_"That is very true, she did, and we agreed that we understood and that we would support her in it. I will attempt to use my intellect instead of my emotions,"_ Malek agreed.

Malek felt amusement coming through from Devlin, as he said, _"Yes, please do so, because I am not used to being the one being practical and logical. I am usually the one that is blinded by emotion."_

_"I promise I will do better, Dev. You have my word,"_ Malek replied. He stood as the meeting broke up.

He headed towards Gwennetha. As he reached her, she said, "Yes, my love, I will be very careful and use all of my abilities that I am allowed to use to see to it that I come to no harm."

Malek smiled slightly, saying, "See that you do, and how did you know?"

"I read your disquiet in your face, _Amat Wyn_. In addition, I read when you realized that you must let me go. Love does that to a person. It heightens their perceptions in regard to the one they love. Now come, you must talk to the team, and I must talk to the other priestesses and Commander Kataya."

"Commander Kataya?" Malek asked, amused.

"In battle, she is not my mother, and I am not her daughter. She is my commander, and I am her soldier. It is the only way it will work, Malek," she said earnestly.

Realizing she was very serious, he gave it some thought, and realized that what she said was very true. Emotion could not come into this exercise, this battle, any battle. Nodding, he said quietly, "I understand, and I agree. I must go and so must you." With a quick hard kiss, he was gone.

She smiled as she watched him stride down the corridor. He loved her well, and he would learn. Turning, she made her way to the group of priestesses. This should be a fairly simple exercise, although the inability to manifest as Katteri-enti would make it more of a challenge, if there were a great many more Jaffa than had been reported. There was no doubt, there would be more; the Goa'uld would have called in reinforcements expecting this rescue attempt. She shrugged. They had faced worse odds and won. Moreover, they had all become adept at using the Tau'ri weapons.

An unusual but effective weapon her little P-90, she thought as she patted it fondly. She smiled remembering the looks the Katteri had received upon the naming of their weapons. Maretel came to her as easily as her sword, though the Tau'ri had yet to realize and see that. They had been surprised enough at seeing her mother's sword respond to her verbal command. If they were ever to see the Tau'ri weapon jump up and into their hands, they would be shocked.

She wondered for a moment what they would think if they ever saw her grandfather's sword respond to her mother, for it would move only for her grandfather and her mother, and it was a mighty sword indeed. Grandfather had trained it to answer to her mother. Usually, swords would answer only to the one who named them; however, Grandfather's sword was special. Gwennetha smiled to herself, thinking of the large powerful man who loved them all so much.

She came up to the group of priestesses. Some were going to go in with teams. She would go in with the forward Katteri contingent. Both Merdwin and her mother would also be first in. The shields protecting the first ones through would be strong indeed, and the protection would move to anyone coming through without someone in their team throwing shields. She recognized two that would normally be the Katteri throwing a team shield. They would probably rejoin their team when their teammates came through the portal. They would use individual shields at first, the most difficult type to throw. She was also to spread a shield that would disguise the symbiotes in the Tok'Ra. She nodded. Those were not particularly difficult, as they were more illusion than shield, but still she would have to maintain it until the team members responsible for it took over.

Her mother stepped away from the group and over to the two officers from SG-10 who wished to go with the rescue group. The two captured people were from their team. She listened to her mother, as she explained what the link was, how to access it, and how to use it. She assured them that no one would be reading their minds. They looked anxious and worried. She saw her mother rest her hand on first one and then the other, calming them, although they did not realize she had done so. How like her grandfather her mother was, without even realizing it. Someday she would step into his role, and she would do it well, her and her Dayillon.

Ah, Merdwin was mounting the ramp to give instructions. He addressed the Katteri gathered in the group, "We will go in using our armbands to draw energy and set up individual protective shields. They are the only things we will take in that are Katteri. We will use only our Tau'ri weapons. If any of you have your ribbon, or even your dagger, leave them behind. Hand any things you have over to Lieutenant Simmons, and he will keep them until we return. We cannot and will not tip off Bastet at this time and believe me, if anyone is discovered to be Katteri, she will know before first light on her planet."

He continued, reiterating the types and configuration of the shields he wanted used. He then reminded them, "The High Priestesses among us will be helping with the shields so they will be somewhat stronger than they will be on our next mission. You all need to be making mental notes of what works and what does not, so keep in mind that the shields will be somewhat weaker in the next mission, and consider that when assessing how things are working. We will have a group wide meeting after this exercise to discuss this type of thing."

"Stay in formation as much as possible but you must act as if you are Tau'ri, which means that you must look for something to shelter behind if possible. Standing and letting their weapons fire hit your shield is not something that would pass unnoticed. That goes for all of you, Tok'Ra, Katteri, and Tau'ri. You must not act as if you are behind a shield, for we do not want them to realize that. We will hope that we are able to take out the guards at the gate before the rest of you come through; however, I am fairly sure that there will be more Jaffa there than we are expecting. You all have extra ordinance. Be prepared to use it."

"Once everyone is through the Chaappa'ai, those of you that are in the advance guard will rejoin your team and continue to keep the shield intact. Seconds are, as they know, responsible for the link. Do not drop it, no matter what. Are you all ready?" At their nods of agreement, he ordered, "Katteri, attack position three and five. Center post - take position. Left post - take position. Right post - take position. Form left flank. Form right flank."

Walking back to Kataya, he and she stood in the very center of the group he had formed into a semicircle with his few terse commands. When you looked at him, it was easy to see in him the pagan Warrior. He appeared nonchalant and relaxed, yet, one could sense a furious wildness there, just below the surface, and one knew instinctively that this was a very dangerous man. More than one pair of female eyes looked there with appreciation showing in their eyes, more than one pair of male eyes, looked on him with envy. His daughter looked on with pride.

Her mother told O'Neill they were ready. Jacob Carter was the next to address the groups. He faced the soldiers who suddenly seemed to remember who was in their team and moved into position within their own group. He smiled grimly. They realized this was something of a practice run for them, and their performance today would tell what they needed to work on and what they were doing well. "Okay, listen up. No ribbons, if you have them with you, give them to Lieutenant Simmons and pick them up when we get back. Use your zats and your Tau'ri weapons."

"Listen to the link, and follow all orders given by your group leader and the Colonel. You heard the previous instructions. We do _not_ want them to know there is a shield around us. And, for heaven's sake, if you are going in with the host in control, _do not look up_ if or when you change over. The Katteri are going to be using a shielding that will hide the presence of the symbiotes, so don't allow them to find out who and what you are some other way." He reminded them there would be meetings afterwards to go over everything so to make mental notes of anything they felt was either very good or very bad.

Colonel O'Neill climbed the ramp and addressed the Tau'ri and everyone else as well. "Okay, people, you heard what has been said. There is gonna be a shield around you. It is not foolproof and we _do not_ want it to be obvious. _Do not_ depend on it entirely; you are all well trained soldiers, so use your skills to avoid injury. Once we clear the gate, we head for the house where we know they were holding our people. Special Assignment teams one, two, and four will work to free our people. Teams three, five and seven, will secure and keep the gate unless needed elsewhere. Team six will use the launchers to pin down what you can to keep them away from the gate and us."

Turning to the two officers who were new to these groups but still wanted to help rescue their teammates he said, "Johnson, you and Harris stay with team three. Kataya set your link, don't let it worry you, and whatever you do, _do not_ fight it. Remember what she explained; no one is entering your mind, but any thoughts you have that you send out, especially if you attach emotion to them, can be read. All you have to do is just let the information come to you, and if you need to say something just send it outward and someone in your team will hear you. Is that understood?"

"Yes, sir, Colonel," they both responded in unison.

Moving his attention back to the rest of the groups he asked, "Did everyone get their orders and understand them? Good. Let's do it people." Jack nodded to the control room, the Sergeant input the symbols and the gate sprang to life.

They watched as Merdwin gave the order to ready their weapons. At his nod, they entered the event horizon. When the others came through behind them they were surprised to see the Katteri, while having taken what cover they could, were still in a semi-formation and Jaffa were falling as if they were targets on a practice range.

It soon became obvious that Merdwin had been correct in his suspicion and there were many more than sixty or so Jaffa. The reinforcements he expected were definitely there. The Katteri stood their ground and soon the teams set to get the captives out were advancing, while the others remained behind to hold the gate, and it was obvious, the links were functioning extremely well. So far, the teams were performing perfectly together.

Once the groups started to move away from the gate, the Katteri threw up group shields, which were not so hard to maintain as the individual ones. It did not take them long to reach the village. Jack's team made its way into the house as the other two teams secured the perimeter and assured no Jaffa would re-enter the house to surprise the team that had gone in after their people. Once inside they found only a handful of Jaffa guarding it.

The noise of the battle pulled all available Jaffa to it except for these few. Jack wondered where the system lord was. They had taken out the guards with almost no trouble and Sam was with Ellen Stevenson. She looked to be unconscious but alive as was her teammate. Jack watched as Merdwin knelt down beside each of them and laid his hand on them for a few seconds.

Turning to Jack he said, "They are both unconscious and as badly as they are hurt I do not advise bringing them around. Let us get them back to the gate. I hope that moving them will not aggravate their injuries. I do not believe it will, but I can guarantee that they would both be in agony if they were brought to consciousness." Teal'c picked up the limp form of Ellen Stephenson while Merdwin picked up Sergeant Martin.

Suddenly, Jack stopped, "Where is Kataya?"

"She will be finding and disposing of the System Lord," Merdwin said calmly. "I will find her and tell her to hurry."

"_Where are you?_"

_"I am up the stairs and in the first room on the left._" Suddenly they heard the sound of a body hitting a wall and sliding down it, followed by three zat blasts, and then Kataya was coming down the stairs.

Jack looked into Merdwin's eyes, and then turned to Kataya, as she indicated Ellen Stevenson's partially naked body, saying, "Here, wrap her in this, and then let us go. We should head back to the gate with the injured, and we cannot leave all of these bodies for these poor villagers to deal with either."

"What do you suggest?" Jack asked tersely.

Lifting her zat, she disposed of the guard's bodies. Shrugging she looked into O'Neill's eyes, and said, "I suggest we clean up after ourselves. It is either that or send a team through to clean up and help the villagers."

The Colonel had chosen to send a team through to help the villagers, but Gwennetha had seen the shock on his face as he had looked at Merdwin and Kataya. She had watched him absorb the knowledge as they walked toward the gate. She had turned to Malek, expecting to see the same shock on his face. He smiled at her and shook his head. I understand, his look said. Do not worry. I know what you are, and I love you anyway. She smiled at him and turned back to the group as Daniel input the glyphs that would allow them to go back to the SGC.

She could tell that O'Neill was coming to terms with what he had seen. A system lord had died, and the spirit of the Katteri-enti, if not the actual manifestation of it, had done it. Bastet would be just as dead because of it. All in all, it had been a good day.

* * *

Gwennetha watched as her mother and her beloved, Daniel, left for the night. Tomorrow would see the destruction of Bastet. Samantha and her mother returned earlier that day after spending a few days with Artereos and Merdwin. She talked privately to her mother, and they said everything that needed said between them. Both knew that tomorrow would see the beginning of the end of the System Lords in this sector of the universe. Not that it would be over soon, for it would not, but this would remove a significant threat. One whose removal they would accomplish no matter the cost to them. She sighed as she thought once again, _yes, at all costs,_ and she was very much afraid the cost would be high indeed.

She needed to be sure that Malek and Devlin knew who they would be facing tomorrow as well as how it could affect her mother. That was something she could tell him, and she needed to do so before they began this long night. Sleep would probably not come for them, and if it did it would be very little. She wanted to spend every second of it reveling in him and storing memories.

Turning she started down the hall toward their room. He would be coming in soon. The priestesses had spent yesterday and most of today in the sanctuary on Avilion. It was imperative that their healing abilities be as complete as possible and that their centers be as calm as possible. They would pull more energy tomorrow morning as well.

Entering their room, she proceeded to light a couple of candles and change into one of the gowns she preferred to wear to bed, although they did not usually remain on her for long. Still, she loved the feel of the fabric as it caressed her skin. She would wear the one she had worn the night Malek and Devlin had said the words of the Soulmate, when they had declared to one another and become eternal mates. How she loved them.

Sighing she forced her mind to leave thoughts of tomorrow. Worrying about it and thinking about it would change nothing, and although the portends were not good, they did not leave Morgasha/Bastet alive, and that was the most important thing. When all was said and done, even her mother would tell her that the most important thing was that Morgasha was dead. _No matter the cost. _

Hearing the door, she turned as Devlin entered. They had showered and Malek always became languid after being in the hot water. She smiled at him and went into the arms he held out to her. "Hello, my love. Have you eaten already?" He asked, surprised.

Waving at the small table that graced the room, she said, "Yes, and I brought you something to eat, as well as some extra chocolate pudding for Malek. And you," she added slyly.

He grinned at her, as he shrugged. He and Malek had both become addicted to chocolate. Lantash and Martouf had admitted to the same thing. They had decided it was a Tau'ri plot. They did not know what it was in aid of, but it had to be a plot. Of course, Daniel and many others also admitted to a fondness for it, so they knew that they were not truly the targets of a conspiracy. Before heading for the table, Devlin pulled her into his arms for a long soft kiss. Becoming lost to everything but the feel of her in his arms, he moaned as she pulled back from him slightly and looked into his eyes.

Laughing gently at the bemused look he sent to her, she said softly, "You must eat first, _Carusawyn_. Then we will sit and talk for a time. And then we will take a trip to the stars, yes?"

"Yes," he agreed, finally releasing her and heading for the table that was ready for him. Seating himself, he watched her as he began his meal; he could tell that she was preoccupied. After wandering around the room for a time, she finally came back to the table and seated herself across from him.

Finishing as quickly as he could, he gathered the plates and utensils up and said, "I am going to return these to the mess hall. I will be back shortly; _Coeurawyn_, and then you can tell me what is bothering you so deeply." He watched the startled look enter her eyes before turning and leaving to return the tray and its contents. As he left the room, he almost ran into an airman heading in the same direction.

"If you are taking that back to the commissary, sir, I can take it. I am going that way, the young man offered. Devlin smiled at him as he agreed that he had indeed been heading in that direction, and he would appreciate it if he would take it back for him. Handing it to him, he turned and re-entered their room.

Gwennetha was sitting on the floor with candles in front of her and the circlet on her head glowed as she pulled energy into her center. Hearing him enter, she allowed the energy flow to stop as she leaned forward and blew out the candles. Standing, she picked them up and placed them on the dresser, before turning to him, "You should get comfortable, Devlin. I need to talk to you," she said quietly.

She appeared as calm as ever, although he could tell she was more solemn than usual. He nodded his agreement and turned to go to the dresser, only to have her stop him with a hand upon his arm. "I thought you might like to wear this. It is comfortable and um, easily removed," she said softly, as she handed him a pair of satin trousers and a matching jacket that wrapped around him and tied.

Once he was dressed in the garments, he looked at her. The satin trousers simply tied at the waist so they tended to settle low on his hips. The jacket wrapped around and tied leaving a deep v of exposed flesh. She gazed at him with a small smile playing around her lips and an expression of appreciation in her eyes. "My mother is almost always right, you know," she murmured. "She told me that garment would stay on your body for a very short time. She has excellent taste," she continued, as she walked forward and extended her hand to lay it upon his chest where the v left the skin open to her gaze as well as her touch.

Sighing, she stepped back and headed for the bed. After arranging the pillows, she invited him to join her. "There are things I need to tell you and Malek, Dev. I need to tell you tonight, so that I do not have to try to do so tomorrow, when I will need to be concentrating on conserving my energy."

Leaning back against the pillows, he made no move to take her in his arms, sensing that she needed to talk to him without the distraction physical contact between them would no doubt bring. "What do you need to tell me, Gwennetha?"

"You need the information about who Morgasha is. We are going into a battle situation. Anything could happen. I am assuming that my mother will tell Daniel and Samantha will tell Martouf, but in case they do not, I wish you to know. Should something happen to us, then someone should know, so that they may answer questions that arise."

"You are telling us that you are going to be injured, are you not, Gwennetha?" Devlin said, as calmly as he could.

Gwennetha looked startled, but she answered immediately, "No, I am not. I will be fine I am sure, but I may have to attend to the injured. If I must leave for Avilion with the injured, I wish you to have this information." It was obvious she was speaking the truth. She was not expecting to be injured, but obviously, she was expecting injuries, and they would need her. So, now he had at least some idea of what was going on. She did not act as if she expected him to be injured either.

"I believe you, my love. What is it that you wish me to know?"

"Morgasha is the sister of my Grandfather, Artereos. And she was Merdwin's mate," she said clearly. "She is a very powerful enchantress, as well as the Dragon of the Blood. She attempted to steal Merdwin's power and trap him in stasis millennia ago, and she has continued to make attempts on his life and the life of my grandfather, from time to time. Being a First-born, she can get no closer to them than they can to her, so none of them met with success. Just as she can sense them, they can sense her. She will not be expecting my mother and Samantha. She cannot sense them," she stated quietly.

"Gwennetha, correct me if I am wrong, but is going up against her not very much the same thing as going up against Merdwin? Samantha and Kataya cannot defeat him in practice, how do you expect them to defeat her? This is crazy," Devlin said, very disturbed at what she had told him. They were defeated before they began, if what she was saying was true. Of course, they had known all along that she was a First-born, but somehow, her being Artereos's sister and Merdwin's mate—dear universe, _Merdwin's_ mate—made her suddenly seem invulnerable.

Laying a hand on his arm to calm him and get his complete attention, she said, "Dev, the practice sessions you have seen are not the entire stories. My mother, alone, can fight Merdwin to a draw as only herself, and do not forget that she and Samantha will have manifested as the Dragons."

"Even as the Dragons though, they will have difficulty, not because they are not as adept as she, but because they cannot heal as quickly from wounds. It is the great regenerative power of a First-born Furling blended with a Goa'uld, which is the problem. Morgasha will be able to heal faster than my mother and Samantha. Please trust me in this, Devlin. My mother and Samantha will be able to defeat Morgasha/Bastet," she said, firmly and calmly.

Seeing the skepticism in his face she sighed, and continued, "There are things about my mother that are not known outside of our inner circle. You and Malek cannot reveal this to anyone, just as you cannot reveal that both Samantha and my mother are Dragon Slayers. Do I have your word?" She asked.

"Of course. You know that being secretive is a way of life for the Tok'Ra, Gwennetha," he assured her.

Nodding, she finally said, "My mother has been a student of Merdwin's in the Mystic and Arcane Arts for millennia, and her power as an enchantress is more than Morgasha's."

She stopped for a moment, and as she considered whether to tell him more, Malek came forward to say, "Gwennetha, Dev, and I will say nothing of whatever you tell us, not to anyone, I promise you."

After looking at him for a long time, she seemed to come to a conclusion. "My mother inherited some powers from her mother. As you know, her mother is Wiccadian." She smiled grimly, as she realized that they had not even the vaguest notion of what that meant. She would have to explain it to them, then. Thoughts were as words and she began again, saying, "Many Wiccadians, besides being adept empaths, are also mystics with the ability to control the elements. Most to only a moderate degree, but there are some, like my grandmother and my own mother who are very powerful in their abilities. My Grandmother, Gwynnivar, was one of the most powerful of the Nature Enchantresses, and my mother inherited her abilities. In other words, our Wiccadian blood enables some of us to harness the powers of nature."

"Morgasha is aware of this only in a minimal way. It is not something that we speak of, or use often enough, for it to be widely known. She has no idea of its true power, but I assure you that my mother has the ability to harness immense amounts of power through her connection with nature."

"If my mother must, she will use that power, along with the power of the Dragon of the Fire. _Morgasha_ _Will. Be. Dead., _at the end of the day tomorrow, one way or the other." Again, she seemed to be lost in thought.

"But that is good, is it not? That is what this battle and all of the training is about. It is that toward which we have all been working. Why are you so unsettled? I thought this was what was wanted."

"It is. We want it, and it will happen. However, other things could happen. Malek, Dev, you _must_ understand…Morgasha is pure evil. It must and will be contained. I just want you to understand that there will still be much left to accomplish once she is dead. Her death does not mean it is completely over for us, although it will be for you and the Tau'ri."

"You are telling me that you may have duties to perform after the battle tomorrow. You are warning me that you may be called away soon after it," he said softly.

Nodding, she said, "It is possible. It is also possible that someone will see the resemblance between Grandfather and Morgasha. I wanted you to know, in case someone asks questions. She has tried many times to kill both my grandfather and Merdwin. She wishes to destroy the All and the peoples that populate the universe that do not serve a purpose for her. If she could destroy the All, she could destroy anything and everything. There would be nothing to stop her. For all our sakes, whatever takes place tomorrow; she must be dead when it is over. You promised me unwavering faith, Malek. I am afraid that may soon be tested."

Seeing the tears in her eyes and the trembling of her lips, Malek reached for her and drew her into his arms. "We will have faith in your love for us, Gwennetha, and we will do our best to understand whatever happens. We promise you, my love. We promise you." Hearing the sigh of relief she gave, he claimed her lips with his. Soon leaving them, he left a trail of kisses and nibbles down the side of her throat, leaving her gasping. The gown soon lay in a pile under them, along with the pants and jacket he wore.

When morning came, Malek opened his eyes to see her gazing down at him. "You have only been asleep for an hour or so, Malek, you, and Devlin. You should get some more rest before the mission," she said softly.

"I would rather spend some of our free time loving you instead, my mate," he said, as he drew her lips to his. Gwennetha relaxed into her mate's arms and sighed as his lips left soft kisses across the top of her shoulder and up her neck. She smiled, enjoying the feel of him. Soon they were lost in a world of their own once again.

They had loved the night away. Now they loved their few hours of the morning away as well. Never had they ever experienced anything so amazing. When they were not making love, they simply sat and absorbed the essence of one anther. It was a night and morning that they would remember forever. So much love passed between them. If she had to leave and go to Avilion, and they could not accompany her, then this night and morning of loving would light their days until she returned to them.

* * *

Malek was stunned. He and Devlin were in shock at the outcome of the battle. Samantha, Kataya, and Morgasha/Bastet were dead, and Martouf, Lantash, and Daniel were all in critical condition from injuries they had sustained during the battle.

Never in his thousands of years had he ever witnessed a battle such as they saw this day. First Kataya and Morgasha/Bastet and then Samantha manifested. Team two, his team, were part of the groups that fought their way into the Fortress's compound. After they took out the Jaffa in the compound, Morgasha/Bastet appeared.

Her laughter at seeing a group of Tau'ri attempting to do battle with her had turned to an enraged screech when Kataya stood and removed the shielding that kept her true essence from Morgasha's detection. Enraged, Morgasha began to manifest at once and Kataya had matched and overtaken her in the swiftness with which she accomplished it. They battled fiercely and she almost took Kataya down at one point, before Samantha could manifest. Soon though, Samantha had gone through her own manifestation, Kataya and Samantha had mixed their blood, and their joined power had been immense. So immense that it was almost beyond comprehension.

Still, he mourned, it had not been enough. Even with their combined power, the regenerative power of the First-born Furling joined with a Goa'uld was formidable. In the end, Kataya used her Wiccadian abilities, just as Gwennetha foretold to them, and harnessed the powers of Nature, joining them to her powers of the Dragon of the Fire, to take out the beautiful, but deadly creature. Dear Universe, he would never forget Daniel's scream of "_No!_" and the love that Kataya sent flowing toward him, as she prepared to die; for in using all of her power, she left herself open to destruction, as well. Even so, she was smiling in triumph, for there was no doubt that Morgasha and Bastet were dying. However, dying or not, Morgasha still managed to kill Kataya and Sam. Sam attempted to protect her sister, as she stood defenseless, though smiling, thus, all three of the Dragons died. The rest of them stood frozen in place, unable to move, until Daniel, Martouf, and Lantash began running towards their mates.

At least Samantha and Kataya lived long enough to say good-bye to their mates. To say good-bye and to insist they make vows to continue to live and fight the Goa'uld for them. To make them promise they would live and go forward with their lives. The women requested and the men gave promises to take care of one another. Daniel to take care of Martouf and Lantash, and they, in turn, had promised to take care of Daniel. Those vows were probably the only things that would keep these two men alive now. At least, he hoped it would be enough to force them to fight for their lives. There was no doubt that Martouf and Lantash, as well as Daniel, were very severely injured.

Why, why had no one in the teams that had taken up positions to keep the Jaffa out and away from the battle of the dragons, noticed that the far wall had no one protecting it? The fact that most of the Jaffa were on the other two sides was no excuse. Just because it was a short back wall, no more than twenty or so feet long was no excuse. That it came straight up to the buildings themselves was no excuse, either. There had been soldiers within thirty or forty feet of them.

Why had none of them thought to go to the aid of the two men who were not only defending that one short wall, but were also watching as their mates battled for their lives, the lives of the Tok'Ra, the Tau'ri and the universe in general? It was good that so few Jaffa had tried to come through there, but perhaps, if there had been more of them, the soldiers would not have continued to move away from them and toward the more active areas.

He sighed. There was nothing to gain by asking why now he supposed, and O'Neill would be feeling enough guilt without having more poured on him. It was not, after all, a truly active area, and they had needed all the firepower they could get to keep the Jaffa at bay during the battle. He just wished they had at least thought to provide those two men with a Katteri to shield them. He was as much to blame as anyone. As a team leader and third in command, he should have done_ something,_ _anything_ to protect them. He did not, none of them did, and now all they could do was get them back to the base and hope they could survive what looked like, and probably were, life-threateningly severe injuries.

_"Malek this is not your fault. All of us were engaged in protecting the Dragons from outside interference. You could not have known that Daniel and Martouf would suffer injuries. They appeared to be in one of the safer areas, actually, and you know that is true," _Devlin tried, in vain, to comfort his mate.

_"So it seemed at the time, but we were obviously wrong, Dev, and our short-sightedness may very well cost us a very dear friend,"_ Malek's tone was harsh with suppressed pain, sorrow, and guilt.

_"Do not give up on them,"_ Devlin said sharply. "_We do not yet know how badly they are hurt, and the Katteri are helping them. You must have faith in them, Malek."_

_"You are correct, of course. If I allow myself to become despondent, I will be no help to them at all,"_ Malek replied.

They continued walking beside Jacob and Brialek, as he carried Martouf toward the Chaappa'ai. Lantash's son, Lanwin, and his daughter, Taesha, were sustaining them as they moved swiftly toward the gate. The Katteri had reiterated repeatedly that they must continue recalling Martouf and Lantash as well as Daniel, by reminding them of their promises to their mates as they lay dying.

Jacob looked lost and Selmak had been in the forefront several times already. Jocasta was seeing to him though, and that would help him. Jack O'Neill was saying almost nothing, looking straight ahead as if he was afraid to say or do anything else. He was worried about Daniel, and he was refusing to acknowledge that Samantha Carter was gone. He could read the signs; O'Neill was refusing to think about any of it yet.

Stepping out the other side of the Chaappa'ai, Malek sighed. He, too, was refusing to think to deeply. Brialek took Martouf to the infirmary and began working on him immediately. Politely, but firmly, Jacob and Malek were ushered from the room. No, they could not remain; they must leave. There were simply too many people in the rooms, and they were in the way. Yes, someone would tell them as soon as they knew anything. Please, wait outside. As soon as Dr. Fraiser finished in surgery and checked on Martouf, she would be out to talk to them.

As they waited in the hall for word on the injured, Malek's mind traveled back to the end of the battle. Gwennetha was there one moment and gone the next. According to Lanwin, the Billiskner was waiting just far enough away that Morgasha could not pick up Merdwin's energy signature, although with his immense power, he could pick up hers. As soon as Merdwin sensed the deaths of Morgasha and Bastet, Thor moved in and took the bodies of the Dragons along with the priestesses, onboard the Billiskner. They would take them to Avilion, where the All would no doubt come for them. He swallowed, thinking about the huge hole this would leave in the lives of Daniel, Martouf, and Lantash. He had no idea how they were going to survive this loss. He missed Gwennetha, but she was alive and well, just not able to be with him.

She was trying to warn them last night, he realized. Moreover, they had spent almost the entire night awake because she had known that she would be gone indefinitely. Thank the Universe; she had given him last night and the assurance that no matter what, she would be back.

Getting up, he paced the floor. Why were the doctors and healers taking so long? They had been waiting for almost four hours now, to hear how Martouf, Lantash, and Daniel were.

"Dr. Fraiser will let us know as soon as she can, Malek, I promise you," Teal'c told him quietly, as if reading his mind. "We have often waited here for information on one or more of our team members."

Malek nodded and sat back down. Pacing would help no one. They had no choice but to wait.

TBC


	7. Aftermath 7 MALST

**_Chapter Seven Summary:_**_ Martouf, Lantash, and Daniel were hurt during the Great Battle and it is up to their friends and comrades to call them back. Dev makes a discovery about Malek and Lantash's past. Later, when they awaken, Lantash becomes more and more despondent and that worries Malek more and more. Jacob comes to Malek's quarters to tell him that they have been requested by Artereos to go on a several month mission with the Tau'ri...no details. _

**_"Italics" – _**_Symbiote-Host or Telepathic Communication_

_This is the final chapter of Malek's Story. The next story in the series is **Daughters of the Queen, Book III in the Tok'Ra Legacy Series**. I Hope you enjoyed Malek's Story. Malek and Gwennetha will still be followed in ** Daughters of the Queen;** however, their story will be a subplot. Thank you for your comments._

_Pagan Twylight_

* * *

**_Malek's Story_**

**_Chapter Seven  
_**

**_Aftermath_**

* * *

Malek stood looking down at the man lying in the bed. He relieved Jacob who relieved Brialek in their constant vigil. They were staying with him in shifts. Even Garshaw had come in and talked to him before she left to return to the Tok'Ra base. All of them were talking to both Lantash and Martouf, not knowing if they could hear them or not. It did not matter; it made them feel as if they were perhaps doing something that might help. Malek could still hear Janet Fraiser's voice as she gave them her report hours ago.

"Martouf is in serious condition, borderline critical. We are keeping him on fluids and antibiotics. He took a massive jolt of energy. He has severe burns on his back; there are internal injuries, and quite a bit of very severe bruising. I do not know how he managed to stay conscious as long as he did. I have to assume that was Lantash's doing as my opinion is that without that help Martouf would have fallen wherever he was when he was hit."

"The healers think that Lantash is exhausted by keeping Martouf aware and functioning long enough to," suddenly her voice halted for a moment. She cleared her throat, and taking a deep breath, she continued, "he is exhausted by keeping Martouf conscious, aware, and functioning long enough to say good-bye to Sam. They are also telling us that he was very severely injured himself by the blast. They said that he is simply too weak and injured to heal Martouf at the moment. They do believe, however, that when they have managed to heal him, he will then begin to help with Martouf."

"In the meantime, we will treat Martouf as we would any other human and hope he responds to the treatment. They also believe that if the Katteri had not given them blood and supported their life-force they would have died before they ever got back to us. He is not out of the woods yet by any means, but we should know something within the next twenty-four to forty-eight hours. They are reminding him that he promised," Again her voice sank to a whisper, and it was necessary for her to clear her throat, before she could continue, telling them, "that he promised Sam he would live for her."

Malek felt as if the heavens were falling on him. Lantash was a very close friend, a comrade, and he was worried. He remembered how badly Lantash reacted when Kataya's duty called her home, while they were mates. This time, he had lost both the woman he loved more than life, Samantha Carter, his Soulmate, and the mate of his heart, Kataya, the mother of his children.

Dear Universe, how were they to heal his heart as well as his body? Through the millennia they had lived, Lantash had never received this harsh a blow. How were they to keep him from descending into that dark place that his mind would surely try to go? How could they hold him here with them? Only his promises to Samantha and Kataya might succeed. They could do nothing but continue to try to call them both back with it.

_"He was your mate," _Dev gasped, as he briefly saw, flashes, images that had long been buried in Malek's mind. "_Millennia ago, you and Lantash were mates, before you took a male host again. I am so sorry, Malek. I did not know. I knew you were closer to him than to many others; however, I never knew that there was a reason other than your friendship through the years."_

_"Yes,"_ Malek said quietly. _"My host was named Alayissia. Lantash's host was her betrothed, Edouwar. They joined and became mates, and we were together in that way for a great many years. It was a loving relationship, and the love has remained and been a strong foundation for our friendship. We were never as deeply in love as our hosts were, although we did, of course, share their feelings. However, I was always in a male prior to Alayissia. It is not an unusual occurrence for us, Devlin, as you know. Often we must take a host of a sex different than what we had before. And though the, ah, sexual urges usually leave us once we blend with someone of the same sex, the love and friendship remains."_

_"I understand. And I am glad you explained._ _As I said,_ _I have realized for a long time that you and Lantash were closer friends than you let on that you were, but I did not know about this. I am glad I do now; it allows many things to make more sense now. We will do everything we can to help him, Malek, I promise you. We will sit with him and remind him of his promise to Samantha. We will not let him go easily," _Devlin assured him solemnly. It was very apparent that he was truly upset over Malek's obvious anguish; he would do everything he possibly could to alleviate as much of it as he could.

_"Thank you. Lantash is hurt very badly, as is Martouf. Without Lantash to help him heal…_" Malek's voice was bleak and it trailed off, as if he did not dare to finish his thoughts aloud lest they become reality. One did not tempt fate at such times as this.

_"The Tau'ri are doing all they can, too, Malek. In addition, the Katteri helped as much as they could, as well. We are using the healing device. He is neither alone nor uncared for with so many people helping him. No doubt, the help, which Lanwin gave to them, was very important, and it will continue to help them even though they are not here to help now. Gwennetha healed a very bad injury in you, if you will remember. I am sure that their help will make a difference in how well they heal," _Devlin reminded him.

_"But our Gwennetha is gone also, Dev, and I do not believe that she will return any time soon. I believe she knew this would happen. Although, she could not explain it to us, this is why she told us everything that she did. She knew she would be gone,"_ Malek pointed out softly. _"I believe you were aware of it, as well, for you mentioned the night we joined that there was something that she knew, but which she could not tell us. I believe that this is part of the events she could not take the chance of telling us." _

Sighing, Devlin agreed. "_I know. I have realized that, and I believe it to be true, also. However, Malek, we must talk to Lantash and Martouf now, and use the healing device on them to help them to survive. It will help Lantash; because not only are we helping him to heal, but also because we are using it on Martouf, and it will leave that much less that he must expend energy on to heal them. The burn on Martouf's back is healing, albeit somewhat slowly. Come, we must help them as much as we can," _Devlin urged his mate to do what they could, not only to help Martouf and Lantash, but to keep Malek busy and doing something, which would keep his mind busy as well.

_"Yes, you are correct, Devlin; I will begin to do so. As you say, every bit of healing we can do is that much less for Lantash to feel that he must take care of instead of taking care of his own injuries,"_ Malek agreed. Picking up the healing device, he activated it and, after using if for a while on Lantash, he then used it on the burn and the internal wounds and bruising that Martouf received during the battle.

When Jacob gave them his report on their status, he told them that between Brialek, Arwanna, Calise, and himself, Lantash's life-threatening injuries were healing well enough that they could begin to spend more time to heal Martouf. They all felt that they should do everything they could now to take care of Martouf, so that Lantash would not attempt to heal him, before he completed his own healing. Not, Jacob assured them, that they were not healing Martouf as well as Lantash, for they were, but now they could spend more time on him, instead of splitting it and using more on Lantash than Martouf. All of the healers were more proficient than Malek with the healing device, and they felt that both Lantash and Martouf had come a long way already. Otherwise, they would not have let Malek take over. That, at least, made him feel a little better.

Listening to Malek's thoughts, Devlin did what he could to help him, by urging him, softly, _"We will go at this steadily, Malek. We will see to it that they pull through this. Now, you must talk to him of Samantha, his promise, and Kataya. Talk of his children. Talk of anything that may pull him back from the abyss,"_ Devlin encouraged, giving him the support he needed.

Taking a deep breath, he began to call to his friend, "Lantash, you must hear me. You must fight for your survival. You must live. You promised Samantha, you promised Kataya, and you will do this for them."

"You are not yet finished with the tasks you have to complete. You cannot give up now. The Goa'uld must be defeated, and you must be one of the fighters that bring about their defeat. You must not let Samantha's sacrifice be in vain."

"Martouf, you too, must fight to return to us, to this life. Come back to us and continue the fight against the Goa'uld as your mates wished you to do. You must keep your vows, your promises. You will not disappoint your mates. You will not make Samantha unhappy by not fulfilling the last request she made of you. You will do as she asked you to do and continue to fight the Goa'uld. The only way you can do that is to return to us."

* * *

The days seemed to be running together Jacob thought, as he walked up to stand beside Malek. Looking closely at him, he said, "I will take over now, Malek; you have been at this for hours. I am sorry you had to take my place with so little warning. Janet gave me something that made me sleep and it actually put Selmak to sleep, too. It is the first time I have ever known something like that to put him out, but Janet said it probably only worked because he was so extremely exhausted. I guess we both needed the sleep. Just as you and Devlin do. I suggest that if you cannot sleep on your own, you go to see her because it really did help. A lot."

Shaking his head as he picked up the healing device and again ran it over Martouf's body, using it to give strength to Lantash, he said, "You could have slept longer, Jacob, I am fine. Go back to sleep, and Dev and I will stay with him a little longer."

As Malek looked up, Jacob was surprised at the anguish he was allowing to show, as he whispered, "I am almost afraid to leave him, Jacob, he was not this way even when Kataya had to leave. I know that you do not understand, but Lantash and I have a long history together. He was with me through some very difficult times for me, and I—I was with him when Kataya left."

_"It is very true, Jacob, but they do not speak of it. To lose Lantash would be like losing a part of himself. They are much closer in reality than one could tell from their public behavior. I would guess that he is getting less sleep than we were," _Selmak told him, his voice quiet and very serious.

_"What do you suggest, Sel? I can't force him to sleep or to get help to sleep, either one," _Jacob pointed out.

Selmak sighed deeply as he contemplated both Jacob's words and Malek's obvious exhaustion. Thinking it over, he finally stated, firmly, _"No, that is true and you cannot; however, perhaps you can reason with him. Remind him that becoming incapacitated from exhaustion will not help Lantash or Martouf. Malek is usually a very logical and sensible being. Hopefully, he will continue to be long enough for us to reason with him."_

_"Okay, Sel, I will give it a try," _Jacob agreed, knowing that something needed to help him or he truly would collapse from exhaustion.

"Malek, you do realize that if you become exhausted and collapse then you won't be able to come in here and call them back to us. That will be one less voice that they might listen to, one less reason for them to return. Once before, Lantash let you help him. You may be one of the few or maybe even the only one that can hold him here. We don't know, but do not take that help away from him this time by not listening to reason. They need all of us. I think they need us badly. You know that they must be in a great deal of emotional anguish. We have to be here for them both. Please," Jacob finished quietly, but firmly.

Sighing, Malek nodded and allowed the healing device to stop. "Where would I find her?" He asked, just as quietly.

"Try her office. She was in there when I came in," Jacob said softly. Then a thought springing to mind he said, "Malek, the Tau'ri will not look on the use of something to help you sleep as a weakness. They will consider that you are being realistic, and will look on you with favor at what they perceive as your good sense and willingness to accept help through what is a difficult time for all of us. Don't underestimate their understanding."

"Jacob. Thank you."

"Any time, Malek. We are all in this together."

_"He is very correct, Malek, you do need to rest. Do not think that I do not realize that, while I am asleep, you are pacing the floor or the corridor or you have been to the commissary to drink coffee,"_ Devlin said, letting him know he was aware of the nightly trips and floor walking.

_"Luckily, we like coffee. I believe we are one of the few of the Tok'Ra that do so,"_ Malek responded, attempting to change the subject.

_"Do not try to change the subject. Stop and see Dr. Fraiser and get something to help us to sleep. Even though I am getting more than you, I am not sleeping enough either, I know."_

_"I am going to, Devlin. I know that what Jacob said makes sense. We cannot let ourselves become so run down that we are unable to help them."_

_"Good, then let us get some sleep, dear one,"_ Devlin said gently.

* * *

"Jacob, why have you returned?" Malek asked him. "You only left a few hours ago. Artereos said that we must simply wait now. He seemed quite confident that they would soon awaken."

Jacob brought a second chair up to the side of the bed and sat down facing Malek. "I know, and it is the one bright spot in this whole nightmare. However, that was three days ago, Malek. They have been unconscious now for three weeks and three days. That is a long time when there is nothing wrong with them. There is no head injury, nothing, in fact, that would keep them from waking up. Besides, since Artereos came, Merdwin performed the Blood Rite of Brother-ship, and we removed the life support, I don't know, I guess I just thought they would wake up. Artereos seemed to think they would anyway. So, why haven't they? I am just getting worried again, I guess," Jacob sighed, as he explained why he had returned when it was not his time to sit with them.

Malek nodded, saying, "I know. I understand, Jacob. Dev and I, both, keep expecting them to open their eyes and ask why we are sitting here talking to them instead of being out on a mission."

"Well, why are you, Malek? And how long did you say we have been gone?" Martouf asked his voice raspy from disuse.

Malek's hand grasped the comforter they brought from Martouf and Samantha's bed and clenched it in his fist, as Jacob bounded to his feet, staring down into open and questioning blue-gray eyes. Malek stood and looked down into the eyes that he had feared would never again open.

"Do you think I could have some water? I am somewhat thirsty," the same dry raspy voice said.

Finding his voice at last, Malek said, "You have been gone for three weeks and three days. How do you feel?"

"I feel fine, thank you. Thirsty." He frowned slightly, "Hungry." Looking back at the two men, he said softly, "I wish to thank you for calling us back to you. Your voices, reminding us of our promises to Samantha and Kataya called us back to you many times."

Jacob helped him to get a drink, and asked, "Would you like the head of the bed raised?

Martouf sat up then, as Daniel had also done, and said, "That would be pleasant, thank you."

Seeing Dr. Fraiser come rushing into the room, he smiled shyly at her, when she said it was wonderful that they had returned home. Daniel requested something to eat, and Martouf admitted to being both hungry and thirsty. Janet agreed to get them something light, and if they managed that, they would see about getting them more, if they were still hungry.

* * *

Martouf and Daniel were home. Well, they were sort of home. They spent a week at Colonel O'Neill's, and now they were in their own homes, most of the time. From what Malek and Jacob could find out though, they spent most of their time together. If they were not at Daniel's, they were at Samantha's, now Martouf and Lantash's, home.

Malek, Jacob, and Brialek, had taken to spending time with O'Neill, Teal'c, Daniel, and Martouf. It was an odd assortment of personalities, but somehow they had formed a loose bond. O'Neill did not seem to have as much difficulty with the Tok'Ra in a more one on one atmosphere. They had some enjoyable evenings. Martouf and Daniel were doing their best to hide the pain they were feeling, but the others were well aware of it. Looking into their eyes, you could see the desolation and loss.

Jacob felt it was good that they had each other to go to for comfort. The tie that the Blood Rite had formed for them was very strong. It would help them through the pain and loss. They hoped anyway.

From the moment they awakened, it was very obvious that the tie that formed between them and bound them together would be everlasting. At least, once they woke up, they could move farther apart than six feet. When Jack mentioned that it was a relief to know that they wouldn't be joined at the hip on missions, they stared at him as if he must have lost his mind. "What?" Jack had asked them, unnerved by their stares.

"What, Jack? What are you talking about, that's what," Daniel said, while looking at him expectantly.

Jack looked at the others in the room. When no help was forthcoming, and Daniel began to frown at him, he shrugged. Seeing the looks continue, he finally said, "We found out right away, well, right away after you were moved into the same room together, that if we moved the beds farther than six feet apart, you both had some sort of…Well, it was kind of like you...Ya see, you would get like…" Jack struggled to explain what they had seen, and finally, he threw up his hands and simply blurted out, "If we moved your beds too far apart, you both had panic attacks. As soon as we would move you back together, it would go away. The Doc's said they had never seen anything like it, but that it pointed to you being aware of one another, even if you didn't seem to be aware of any of us."

Daniel and Martouf looked at one another, and Daniel said softly, "That is because we were. Wherever it was that we went, we were there together." Even though the people in the room had a suspicion that was true, it was still a little bit of a shock to have it confirmed.

"Well, anyway," Jack finally said, as the silence stretched out, "Now that you are up and around and staying in your own homes, we know that part of whatever it was didn't last. Which is probably a good thing," he finished, obviously thinking of all the problems something like that could cause.

Martouf and Daniel stared at one another as they realized all the implications of what that would mean to them in real life situations, and they both agreed with him, quite fervently. Much as they cared for one another, they had no inclination whatsoever to be that closely joined.

Turning the subject, Daniel asked whose turn it was to rent movies. Finding out it was Teal'c, he groaned, and then smiled at him saying, "Let me guess, Teal'c, Star Wars and Star Trek, am I right?" He actually laughed softly for a moment, something they only rarely heard from them now, and it was apparent to all concerned that Daniel held Teal'c in a lot of affection, and that he considered his fascination with those movies something to enjoy.

"Certainly, Daniel Jackson, I am quite sure our Tok'Ra friends have never seen these movies, for I know they have not been shown in the recreational area. I believe they will find Tau'ri science-fiction amusing, astonishing, and wrong," Teal'c pointed out his reasoning, and then sent both a short nod of his head and a slight smile towards Daniel, who smiled and nodded in return.

Then shaking his head, Daniel leaned back and prepared to forget himself in the realm of make believe, at least for a little while. Now that the Tok'Ra had become used to Tau'ri _'fiction', _Teal'c was probably correct, and it was time to introduce them to _'science-fiction. _They took the movie in stride, enjoying it for what it was. It was entertainment pure and simple, and they had a great time tearing apart the characters, the plots, and the way they solved their dilemmas. It was a great hit though, and every one of them thanked Teal'c for finding a movie that would appeal to all of them on some level. That was the beginning of the _science-fiction fests._ Some of the weirder stuff, like Alien, followed Star Wars, but those were interspersed with movies such as E.T., which they all agreed was a truly wonderful movie. Selmak said he knew someone once that looked just like E.T., and he wondered if they were somehow related. The other Tok'Ra threw popcorn at him for lying. Daniel pointed out that in some ways E.T. was similar to the Asgard, well, both had large heads anyway, so perhaps they would meet his people someday. It was Daniel's turn to be bombarded with popcorn.

Deciding that it was time to introduce the Tok'Ra to Tau'ri Fantasy worlds, Daniel chose the Lord of the Rings series. They all enjoyed them as much as Star Wars and Star Trek. Since it was Teal'c's third favorite set of movies, he was extremely pleased as well, and Selmak insisted that he met Hobbits once on a world somewhere. These claims were becoming a habit of his. So was the popcorn shower he received in response to his comments.

Jack almost made the mistake of getting the Indiana Jones movies, but he remembered in time that they were favorites of Sam's and no doubt Daniel, if not Martouf and Lantash knew that. He was very glad, he told Malek, Brialek, and Teal'c, that he did not make that blunder. They were thankful as well. Someday, they decided, they would be able to watch them, but not now.

Thinking back to that night and those that followed, Malek was sorry that this was their last evening together as a group. Malek, Jacob, Jocasta, and Brialek would be leaving tomorrow and heading back to the Tok'Ra base. Malek was not comfortable with leaving Martouf, but most of all, he was becoming more and more concerned for Lantash, for he said little, leaving Martouf in control almost constantly. It was as if he wanted nothing to do with anyone or anything. Malek tried many times to talk to him, but the conversations never progressed very far. Something always managed to come up that Martouf had to see to for him. Then, he conveniently did not take control again. Moreover, Malek almost never saw Martouf listening. Lantash was withdrawing, and there was nothing he could do to help him. He was afraid that forcing him to talk about Samantha's loss would make the situation worse. He decided that he would give him more time to see if he returned to them, at least for now. Still, he wished he did not have to leave just yet. He could remain, of course; however, he also knew that the Tok'Ra needed him. He would go for now.

_"We will return as often as we can, Malek, I promise you. If we are not sent on a mission, we will come every time we have a day to ourselves, and Lantash and Martouf are not off world. Perhaps with them beginning off world missions it will help to pull Lantash out of his depression,"_ Dev attempted to assure him.

_"I know. Still, Devlin, I am worried. I feel I should say something, but I am afraid I will only make matters worse. Lantash has always retreated into himself when he is in emotional pain. Eventually, though, he usually says or does something that forces someone to confront him. I am hoping he will do so this time, also, and that when he does someone will recognize it for the call for help that it is. We must put our trust in Daniel, for he will probably be the one that is there when it happens. However, I have never seen Lantash withdraw quite this much,_" Malek told him.

_"We will just have to keep checking on him, Malek. Daniel is very good with people and I believe we can trust him to help Lantash. Moreover, it has not really been very long. We must give them time,"_ Devlin said.

_"I know. Nevertheless, while we are giving him time, he may become even more lost to us. We will just have to wait and see, which is the hardest thing there is to do," _Malek replied.

* * *

_"I cannot believe the difference in them Devlin. To think that only a week ago Lantash would not speak to us at all, and today Martouf had a very hard time coming fore to speak to us at all. He seemed content to let Lantash carry the conversation, though,"_ Malek remarked, as he thought about the day. _"Now that we have been relieved of that worry, perhaps we will not worry so much about why Gwennetha has been so silent. It is just too easy for one worry to lead to another,"_ he added morosely.

_"Malek! She warned us that her time would not be her own, and that she might only be able to send a short message. She did that, and she assured us that, although she might be gone for quite some time, still she would return to us as soon as she could,"_ Devlin reminded him.

_"Yes, and I try to remember what Teal'c overheard about Morgasha's soul being bound for all time, as well as how difficult it was likely to be. Artereos, also, mentioned how very busy they were. I heard him tell General Hammond that some complications arose, and that it was going much slower than they anticipated, but that as soon as they could, they would be sending both some Warriors and ambassadors. Still, I wonder why she has said nothing more to us?"_ Malek sighed, still somewhat despondent.

_"Dr. Fraiser has heard only once from Merdwin, and it was a similar message to the one we received. They will return when they can, and they hope it will be soon. You must trust her as you promised her we would, Malek,"_ Dev reminded his sharply. _"Unwavering faith. After all of your talk to Lantash and Martouf about their promises to their mates, surely you will not fail in your promise to ours,"_ he pointed out.

_"No, I will not. Thank you for reminding me, Dev. I know she will return when she can. I just wish it was sooner, rather than later. I miss her."_

Devlin sighed. _ "So do I, Malek. So do I." _

* * *

Hearing a knock on the open doorway, Devlin smiled and said, "Come in, Jacob." He knew it was no one else because only Jacob knocked before entering. Turning, he saw that he was correct and it was Jacob; however, he did not look happy. In fact, he looked annoyed, disgruntled, and somewhat uneasy.

"What is wrong, Jacob? You appear unsettled. Has something happened to Lantash and Martouf? Or, or to Gwennetha?" He asked, bracing himself to hear the worst.

"No, there is nothing that I am aware of, and we have heard nothing about Gwennetha. Martouf and Lantash are on a mission, as far as I know, and I am a little unsettled. We just got a communication from Artereos. We are to pack and go to the Tau'ri world for a mission that could take several months. No details. It was simply a request for you, Brialek, Jocasta, and myself. We are to go, as soon as we can get ready. Garshaw granted his request, of course. What I want to know is why the Tau'ri did not contact us, if they want us to go on a joint mission? More than that, why were there absolutely no details? I understand it is a covert '_need to know'_ mission, but still, I would have thought he would have told us something."

Malek took control, and said, "Are we sure it was Artereos? Is this a trick of some sort?"

"What would be the use of a trick that took us to the Tau'ri home-world? And yeah, as far as I know, it was Artereos. Garshaw asked him if there was an imminent threat to the base, and he said not that he was aware of, that this had nothing to do with the Tok'Ra base. He said it had come to his attention that SG-1 needed us, and he thought we would like to know. Although, since we know that SG-1 is on a mission, if they need us for something, then one would think we would go to wherever they are. And he said to plan on the possibility of being gone for several months."

"Jacob, do you think something has happened to Lantash and Martouf? Do you think he has become unresponsive again? Although," he added thoughtfully, "that makes no sense either."

Jacob shook his head. "I don't think so. Garshaw called it a mission, not a personal trip. I think she would have let us know if it was to do with Lantash and Martouf, and so would Artereos."

"Perhaps, since we are going to the SGC, they have been captured, and we need to be briefed and plan the mission before we leave. That would explain why he would not give us details, preferring not to make the situation known to anyone here, I suppose, in case there _is_ still someone we must be careful of allowing to know what is happening." Malek pointed out the only thing that made sense of both them going to the SGC and the need to know basis."

Jacob frowned, as he gave Malek's scenario some thought, before answering him, saying, "That makes some sense, but why do we need to plan to be gone for "months". That doesn't fit in with the idea you outlined. Everything would fit except that."

Malek shrugged, remarking, "I suppose that could be a ruse to throw others off the truth. We may get there and find out that we will not be gone long at all. Regardless what the case may end up being, in all probability, we should begin to get ready. Have you informed Brialek and Jocasta yet, Jacob?"

"Yes, you are the last to know. How long do you think it will take you to pack to go? Take both uniforms and something we could use if we need to play the parts of System Lords. Although, the SGC will probably supply that kind of stuff," Jacob replied, even as he was considering what they might need on a mission they knew nothing about.

"It will not take us very long, Jacob. Perhaps twenty minutes or so," Malek answered.

Jacob nodded, saying, "Fine. We will meet at the ring transporter in, say, twenty-five minutes then."

"We will be there, Jacob," Malek assured him.

After Jacob left, he started packing, and sighed. It did not really matter to them what they were going to be doing. Gwennetha was still gone, and whatever they were to do would simply be busy work to keep his mind from dwelling on the past six months and her absence. He packed mechanically, having done this so many times before that he could accomplish the task without even thinking about it. Then, his pack loaded and ready, he headed out the door. He had a job to do.

The End

_Malek's and Gwennetha's Story ends here. The next story in the series is **Daughters of the Queen**. _

_The story of Malek and Gwennetha continues in **Daughters of the Queen, **but as far as the heart of their romance, this was their story. Even though apart at the end, it is not a permanent situation, and they both know that, even if Malek does have his moments of doubt._


End file.
